Five soldiers were shot on Wednesday at Fort Stewart-Hunter Army Airfield in Georgia, the authorities said. The gunman, who was apprehended about 40 minutes later, is a sergeant in the soldiers’ unit, a U.S. military official said.
At least two of the soldiers apparently suffered serious injuries. They were being treated in Memorial Health Hospital’s trauma center, the only one in the region, a hospital spokeswoman said. The three other wounded soldiers were being treated at a base hospital.
The authorities provided no other information about the suspect in custody.
About 8,800 people live at Fort Stewart, about 40 miles southwest of Savannah. Officials on the base, which is the home of the 3rd Infantry Division, said the shooting took place in the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team area.
A base lockdown put in place about 11 a.m. was lifted about an hour later, and officials said there was no longer a threat to the community.
Private First Class Shane Labbe, 21, a tank mechanic, and several other soldiers took shelter in the base’s armory as soon as they heard the first reports, according to his father, Robert Labbe, who talked to his son by phone during the lockdown.
Mr. Labbe, who was at his trucking job in Connecticut, said he was concerned for his son, but they both figured the armory was the safest place to be. “It is where they keep all the weapons,” Mr. Labbe said. “I said, ‘At least you can defend yourself if the guy breaks in.’”
The Army Criminal Investigation Division was leading the investigation of the shooting. President Trump was briefed, said Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, and the F.B.I.’s Savannah office was assisting the investigation.
Other shootings have scarred military bases in recent years, including when a gunman killed three people at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida in 2019 before he was fatally shot by officers.
That same year, a Navy sailor fatally shot two shipyard workers at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. And in 2014, a soldier who was being evaluated for post-traumatic stress disorder opened fire at Fort Hood in Texas, killing three people and wounding 16.
Eduardo Medina is a Times reporter covering the South. An Alabama native, he is now based in Durham, N.C.
Eric Schmitt is a national security correspondent for The Times. He has reported on U.S. military affairs and counterterrorism for more than three decades.
Christine Hauser is a Times reporter who writes breaking news stories, features and explainers.
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