UPPER MACUNGIE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — One person died and one other was injured after a gunman opened fire at a Pennsylvania convenience store early Wednesday before turning the gun on himself, according to Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin.
Authorities responded to reports of the shooting around 4:50 a.m. at a Wawa convenience store in Upper Macungie Township.
Update 3:30 p.m. ET April 21: A coroner identified the man who opened fire early Wednesday at a Wawa convenience store in Lehigh County as Za Uk Lian, 45, of South Whitehall Township.
The coroner also identified slain truck driver as Ramon Ramirez, 31, of Allentown.
Ramirez had driven for A. Duie Pyle since November 2019 and was married with three children, according to Pete Dannecker, a vice president at the family-owned company. Ramirez was likely making a quick pit stop before picking up a trailer for the day, he said.
“People who work with him said he was a great guy, did a great job, everybody liked him,” Dannecker said. “The driver had nothing to do with this, just got caught up in somebody else’s issues.”
Update 11:05 a.m. ET April 21: Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin credited a Wawa employee for his quick thinking when he heard gunshots early Wednesday at the gas station in Upper Macungie Township.
“There was an employee of Wawa who was taking out trash and heard the gunshots,” Martin said. “He ushered two prospective customers from the parking lot into the Wawa and he alerted the employees in the Wawa to shelter in place and he locked the doors.
“So, all credit to him.”
Update 9:45 a.m. ET April 21: Authorities are investigating the motive behind Wednesday morning’s deadly shooting in Upper Macungie Township.
“We don’t have any motive at this point,” Lehigh County District attorney Jim Martin said. “It appears that the ... shootings that I have described have been indiscriminate and unrelated.”
He stressed that it is early in the investigation and that it’s not confirmed the shooting wasn’t targeted.
Update 9:40 a.m. ET April 21: Authorities were called around 4:50 a.m. to respond to a report of shots fired at the Wawa convenience store at Route 100 and Schantz Road in Upper Macungie Township, officials said.
Investigators determined that a gunman in a white Toyota Corolla fired shots at a white car while it was being driven by a woman Wednesday morning. She was not injured. Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin said the gunman then parked at the Wawa convenience store, where he shot a man sitting inside his Jeep and a truck driver who was pumping gas.
The driver of the Jeep was taken to a hospital, where he is being treated for injuries that do not appear to be life-threatening. Martin said the truck driver died of his injuries.
The gunman ran about a quarter of a mile south before shooting himself in the hand and the chest, Martin said.
Update 9:30 a.m. ET April 21: Police declined to identify the victim killed in Wednesday’s shooting in Upper Macungie Township, citing the need to notify the next of kin.
Original report: Police are investigating after a possible active shooter situation was reported in Upper Macungie Township, Pennsylvania, according to multiple news outlets.
Pennsylvania State Police told WFMZ that a “serious police incident” occurred about 6 a.m. Wednesday at the Wawa convenience store at Route 100 and Schantz Road. At least one person was taken to a nearby hospital with injuries after a gunman, described as a white man wearing a black and red hoodie, opened fire, the Morning Call reported, citing police radio.
A person was later apprehended outside Brookside Children’s Early Education Center, a day care, according to the newspaper.
This is Upper Macungie and I’m seeing multiple departments on scene. pic.twitter.com/jAhxw8abvv
— Jennifer W. Sheehan (@jenwsheehan) April 21, 2021
By 8:40 a.m., no threat existed to the public, Trooper Nathan Branosky, public information officer for Troop M of the Pennsylvania State Police, told The Morning Call.
BREAKING: @PSPTroopMPIO tells me there is no more danger to the public. Hoping for a 9 am press conference
— Jennifer W. Sheehan (@jenwsheehan) April 21, 2021
Businesses were been placed on lockdown, and roads in the area were closed as authorities investigated. Authorities asked drivers to stay away from the area.
Route 100 is completely closed right now between Interstate 78 and Industrial Boulevard, and Schantz Road is also closed.
— Ali Reid (@alireidtv) April 21, 2021
Upper Macungie police and other agencies, including Pennsylvania State Police and Lehigh County’s Emergency Response Team, remain at the scene, the Morning Call reported. Authorities plan to hold a news conference this morning, according to the newspaper.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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