Two people have been injured, and five people have been killed in a bow and arrow attack in Kongsberg. One man has been arrested. The police believe the perpetrator acted alone.
“We can, unfortunately, confirm that there are several injured and dead people. The injured have been taken to the hospital,” Øyvind Aas, police chief in Drammen, stated.
The police got a report at 6:28 PM that a person had shot at people with a bow and arrow in Kongsberg. A large area in the center was cordoned off and evacuated.
An extensive police operation was launched, and witnesses reported a dozen ambulances that were on their way to Kongsberg. At 8:30 PM, the police confirmed that several people were injured and that several were dead.
“Acted alone”
“The police have arrested the man who carried out the attack, and there is no active search for more people. Based on the information we have, there is one person behind this,” Aas said.
Police confirmed that they considered the situation to be under control.
Several of the injured were taken to the hospital in Kongsberg, while Drammen hospital was put on standby.
In addition, eight ambulances were sent from Oslo, press officer Anders Bayer at Oslo University Hospital told NTB.
A lot of activity
A witness NTB has spoken to says that there has been a lot of activity in the city center during the evening.
“I heard that the alarm went off at Coop, but did not think much about it. Then I heard that there were ambulances and police cars,” Marit Hoefle, who lives in Kongsberg center, told NTB.
Hoefle lives just behind the Coop Extra store, where parts of the incident in Kongsberg took place.
She said that the police were walking around with flashlights and looking through garages and backyards in Kongsberg center at 9 PM.
“There are a lot of policemen walking around here. Police have also knocked on our door and asked if we are well,” she said.
Several crime scenes
Police say that the perpetrator walked around during the attack and that there are, therefore, several crime scenes over a larger area.
In addition to the police in the Southeast, the police from Oslo and the Delta unit contributed to the operation. Several air ambulances were sent to the scene.
It was first reported that witnesses said that military forces assisted in the operation, but the Armed Forces’ operational headquarters told NTB that they had not been asked to assist.
“Our operations center has also not invested any resources in this case,” spokesman Preben Aursand said.
One man arrested
The police are not sharing details related to the arrest of the perpetrator. In a press release, the police confirmed that a man had been arrested.
Police say it is too early to say whether this was a terrorist attack.
The Police Security Service (PST) has confirmed that they have been informed about the case.
“We are in close dialogue with the police,” senior adviser Martin Bernsen in PST told NTB on Wednesday night.
“A tragedy”
Mayor Kari Anne Sand says the Municipality has mobilized and set up a crisis team to be able to receive those affected.
“It is a tragedy for all those affected. I have no words,” Sand told the newspaper VG.
A center has been established where relatives and others involved can receive assistance at Gyldenløve Hotell, the newspaper Laagendalsposten writes.
Shortly after 11 PM, the police announced that 5 people had been killed in the attack. Two people have been injured, among them, a policeman who was not at work.
Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews
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