Two deputies in North Carolina have died from their injuries suffered during a more than 13-hour-long standoff at a home near Boone, Watauga County Sheriff Len Hagaman confirmed Thursday morning.
Three civilians — including the suspected shooter — also died, bringing the death toll to five people.
K-9 Deputy Logan Fox died at the scene, Watauga County Sheriff’s Office also confirmed in a statement to Fox News on Thursday. Sgt. Chris Ward died after being flown to Johnson City Medical Center for treatment.
Hagaman said that another law enforcement member, a Boone Police officer who participated in an initial rescue attempt, was shot in the head — but his protective helmet saved him from injury.
“Our hearts are broken for our law enforcement partners at the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office. There are no words to explain the sorrow the #FBI family feels for you,” the FBI Charlotte Field Office said in a statement Thursday morning. “We continue to be thankful for the men and women who put themselves in harm’s way to protect our communities.”
Our hearts are broken for our law enforcement partners at the Watauga County Sheriff's Office. There are no words to explain the sorrow the #FBI family feels for you. We continue to be thankful for the men and women who put themselves in harm's way to protect our communities. pic.twitter.com/M6mWLmke4o
— FBI Charlotte (@FBICharlotte) April 29, 2021
The sheriff’s office declined to identify the civilians by name at this time. The individual suspected of killing the two officers is also suspected of killing two civilians in the residence, according to the agency.
The deceased civilians are a stepfather, mother and her son, WSOC-TV reported. It’s unclear who was the suspected shooter.
What began as a welfare check devolved into violence at 9:44 a.m. Wednesday when Watauga County Sheriff’s deputies arrived at a home in the 500 block of Hardaman Circle in Boone, located about 116 miles northwest of Charlotte. The homeowner’s employer had called to report that the homeowner had not reported to work that morning and was not answering the phone.
Deputies entered the house after discovering all vehicles belonging to the residents were on the property, the sheriff’s office said. Upon entering the home, two Watauga County Sheriff’s deputies were shot and had gunshot wounds from an unknown individual within the residence. The standoff between the armed individual and law enforcement ended before 11 p.m. Wednesday.
“This is an incredibly tragic situation and our thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved as well as their families and our community,” Sheriff Hagaman said in a statement Wednesday night. “I greatly appreciate the tremendous support we are receiving from law enforcement agencies across the region and the state.”
In a previous update at 9 p.m., the sheriff’s department said Ward had been airlifted to the hospital and succumbed to his injuries, but Fox was still inside the home at that time as an armed person continued to “periodically” fire at police who have surrounded the building and evacuated the neighborhood.
https://twitter.com/MorganFOX46/status/1387573491403300865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1387573491403300865%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fus%2Fnorth-carolina-deputies-shot-watauga-county-standoff
Images posted to a Facebook profile under Ward’s name and job description show a collection of black-banded police badges in honor of other deputies who were killed in the line of duty in the state. One of them was fellow Watauga County Sheriff’s Deputy William Ronald Mast Jr., 23, who was ambushed while responding to a call in 2012.
Under a recent photo of himself in uniform, Ward’s friends commented, “Be careful please,” and “Love you buddy be safe.”
One of the neighbors who evacuated just told us he’s just been cleared to return home.
Officers in Watauga County have been involved in a more than 13-hour standoff, where two deputies were shot— one killed.
— DaShawn Brown (@DaShawnWSOC9) April 29, 2021
There was a procession down Highway 421 early Thursday in honor of Ward.
Flags were lowered to half-staff outside the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office, WSOC-TV reported, and a memorial of candles, flowers and photos was growing outside the building.
Neighbors who had been evacuated were reportedly cleared to return home before midnight.
Law enforcement agencies from across the state arrived Wednesday to lend their support to the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office, including state police and SWAT operators, officers from multiple departments and deputies from neighboring counties. North Carolina’s State Bureau of Investigation took over the scene Wednesday night.
https://twitter.com/MorganFOX46/status/1387517093579472898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1387517093579472898%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fus%2Fnorth-carolina-deputies-shot-watauga-county-standoff
Residents had been warned to close and lock their doors and windows and shelter inside.
Video from the scene showed that police had blocked off Chapel Hills Road. Authorities had converted a nearby parking lot at Mount Vernon Baptist Church into a mobile command center as they worked to secure the area. Rev. Todd Houston said the church parking lot was hosting a coronavirus vaccine clinic early Wednesday when the standoff began and more law enforcement arrived.
Photos also showed deputies bow their heads in prayer at the scene of the standoff as it was ongoin
The nearby Mount Vernon school also ordered a lockdown, although parents were allowed to pick up their children.
Police said they evacuated nearby residents and surrounded the home.
Law enforcement agencies who supported the Watauga County Sheriff’s Department at the scene included Appalachian State University Police, Avery County Sheriff’s Office, Beech Mountain Police, Blowing Rock Police, Boone Police, Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office, Henderson County Sheriff’s Office, Hickory Police, Morganton Public Safety, North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement, North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, North Carolina State Highway Patrol, Transylvania County Sheriff’s Office, West Jefferson Police and Wilkes County Sheriff’s Office.
Pictures are here: https://www.foxnews.com/us/north-carolina-deputies-shot-watauga-county-standoff
are what we’re seeing , attempted gun confiscations being met with a hell no?
and we’re being told a different story to mask the truth …?
maybe everyone in that house was shot by the pigs, we will never know the truth , as its been shown time and time again they are liars, cant be trusted , and same goes for our criminal media
It sounds like a murder-suicide case, but like you said, we’ll never know the true story. I just love how the gestapo thugs think they have the right to enter anyone’s private property because someone requested a “welfare check”. For all we know, maybe the person who killed the other two family members flipped out when they saw deputies arrive. So many possibilities.
Yeah, Another Long winded story with No real info.
We will be seeing a lot more of this and it will be all lies and propaganda.
What is important is that these criminal, unlawful agencies claiming authority to threaten and kill us do not have enough body bags and hero funeral budgets for their enforcers that start getting sent home dead!
Do not violate our laws, do not tread upon us, you will die. Is that what you fkrs want?
You think you are all going home as Heroes who stopped the bad guys, because you choose to believe you are the good guys, when our laws clearly state the opposite!
“It is the enforcers of tyranny whom MUST Bare the brunt of the peoples resistance to it”…. Hear that mantra you uneducated stasi.
So sad that so many young are tricked by this system of fraud and institutionalized criminality, freedom is not what an authority tells you it is, you live in America and our laws were won in blood wasting criminals in costumes with guns claiming authority to tell us how to live.
Full circle!
the upside of this report is they are saying DEAD .. usually it’s.. gunman killed.. pOlice have non life threatening injuries.. they rarely say dead or killed.. this one is a true story.. too many people must’ve witnessed it for them to lie.. if everybody does this.. there won’t be enough of them for everybody to do this!!… For lack of operatives the machine would grind to a halt.
Welfare check my ass! Checking on the welfare of the 2nd article?
Somebody set somebody up…Guarantee you drugs were involved.
Lock and Load!