COLLIERVILLE CITY, Tennessee — At least two people have been killed including the shooter while 13 others have been wounded during a grocery store shooting in Tennessee said the Collierville City Police.
The shooting was reported Thursday afternoon at about 1:30 p.m. at the Kroger grocery store of the city 30 miles east of Memphis were grocery shoppers ran from the building amid the gunshot fires, according to eyewitnesses and survivors.
The suspected shooter was found dead on scene from self-inflicted gunshot, according to police.
Friends and relatives identified the victim as Olivia King, originally from San Antonio but a longtime resident of Collierville.
She was a widow with three adult sons — one in the Navy, one in the Army, and one who had just completed his Ph.D. She had worked as a financial secretary at a nearby school.
Her son Wes wrote on Facebook, “No one deserves this.” He said she was shot in the chest.
Maureen Fraser, a member of Collierville’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen and a friend of King’s, described her as “Kind, polite, thoughtful.”
"We found people hiding in freezers and in locked offices," said Collierville Police Chief Dale Lane, "They were doing what they had been trained to do. Run, hide, fight."
Chief Lane described the event as "the most horrific event" in the city's history and how heartbroken he is to deliver just news to the people of Collierville city.
Multiple people were injured Thursday in a shooting inside the Kroger on Byhalia and Poplar Avenue in Collierville after an active shooter incident officials are calling the “most horrific event” in the town’s history.
The suspect’s vehicle is still parked and is being investigated. Sources say the suspect was a sub contractor who did work in the store’s deli department.
Lane said officers entered the store just after 1:30 and found multiple people shot, and employees in hiding. He could not comment on whether the shooter was an employee, saying it was under investigation.
Lane called it “the most horrific event that’s occurred in Collierville history.”
Multiple witnesses report hearing at least a dozen shots. Some customers made it out of the store. Employees had others take shelter in the cooler, witnesses said.
One employee named Brignetta Dickerson, who says she’s worked at the Kroger for 32 years, told WREG she hid with her coworkers and several customers when they heard the gunshots.
She said her only concern was her customers and coworkers. “I’m still in shock right now,” said Dickerson. “But I was calm. I was calm and told the customers and my co-workers ‘Just sit down and relax. You’ll be okay.'”
Jean Kurzawski said she worked in the back of the Kroger and heard noises toward the front entrance. She thought balloons were popping at first until she saw customers running. She escaped out a back exit and said she heard gunshots continuing behind her. “I was just thinking, oh I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die, he’s gonna shoot me,” she said.
Multiple ambulances were seen entering Regional One Hospital in Memphis. The hospital reported it saw nine patients, four in critical condition and five non-critical.
Kroger released a statement on the shooting: “We are deeply saddened by the incident that occurred at our Kroger store located on New Byhalia Rd. in Collierville, TN – a suburb of Memphis.
“The entire Kroger family offers our thoughts, prayers and support to the individuals and families of the victims during this difficult time. We are cooperating with local law enforcement, who have secured the store and parking lot.
“The store will remain closed while the police investigation continues, and we have initiated counseling services for our associates. To protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation, we are referring questions to the Collierville Police Department. — Agencies
