Fla. man shoots at firefighters from inside burning home

Neighbors and a fire department rescue vehicle were struck as the man, who was later found dead, fired from within the residence

April 21, 2020 08:48 AM

The scene of a house fire and shooting Monday in Osceola County, Fla. Officials say a man fired from inside the burning home, striking his neighbors and a fire department rescue vehicle. The man was later found dead.

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — A man who deputies believe shot at neighbors and firefighters from inside a burning home was found dead when officials were able to enter the house, an Osceola County Sheriff’s Office spokesman said.

Dispatchers received several 911 calls about 4:30 a.m. reporting a house fire at 246 Strathmore Circle and gunshots in the area, said OCSO Maj. Jacob Ruiz.

As Osceola County Fire Rescue responded to put out the blaze, deputies circled the Remington neighborhood to investigate the gunshots. They discovered a neighbor living across the street who had “several injuries consistent with gunshot wounds,” Ruiz said.

He was taken to a hospital in stable condition.

As firefighters began dousing the blaze, more shots came from inside the house and struck a rescue vehicle, OCFR said. No crew members were injured.

SWAT team members were then called to the home and, after the fire subsided, deputies discovered the man inside. Ruiz said it was not immediately clear how he died. There was no one else inside the home, he said.

Three other houses were also damaged by gunshots, though no one else was injured.

The identity of the man inside the home was not immediately released by officials.

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