Authorities say four people, including a gunman, are dead after a series of shootings in the south-central Kansas town of Hesston. At least 14 people were injured. Officials have identified 38-year-old Cedric Ford as the shooter. Harvey County Sheriff T. Walton says the shooting took place late Thursday afternoon at the Excel Industries factory in Hesston, about 30 miles north of Wichita. The gunman was an employee of the plant, which manufactures lawn mowers. Ten of the injured were reported to be in critical condition. Sheriff Walton says about 200 to 300 people were in the plant at the time of the shooting and, he says, the officer who killed the suspect probably saved many lives.
Marty Pierce is an employee at the Excel plant who worked with Ford and witnessed the shootings.
Police say Ford wounded three people on the street before storming into the building and shooting. Sheriff Walton says Ford was served with a protection from abuse order about 90 minutes before the attacks began. Authorities have also ended a standoff at Ford's home in Newton. Police believed the roommate of the suspect was inside the home but they say no one was found inside.