2LT International News

VIRGINIA BEACH, Virginia – With a confirmed dozen people dead, police are trying to ascertain how a lone gunman was able to carry out a massacre in a city building.

The apparently-disgruntled employee, DeWayne Craddock, 40, was a certified professional engineer for the City of Virginia Beach, based in the public utilities department.

It is not known what triggered the shooting rampage he carried out over three floors of the building, approaching the close of business on Friday.

After killing twelve people, Craddock then engaged in a lengthy gunfight with law enforcement officers. He was shot and seiously injured. Police officers then rendered him first aid however he died of his injuries.

Four people were injured in the attack, three of whom are in critical condition.

“You see this on the news all the time and you pray for the people and hope they’re OK. But you never think it’s gonna happen to you,” Megan Banton, who was in the building and barricaded with her coworkers told CNN. “I have an 11-month-old baby at home, and all I could think about was him and trying to make it home to him.”

“Right now, we have a lot of questions. The whys, they will come later. Right now, we have more questions than we have answers,” Virginia Beach Police Chief James Cervera told reporters.

“This is the most devastating day in the history of Virginia Beach,” Mayor Bobby Dyer told reporters. “The people involved are our friends, coworkers, neighbors, colleagues.”

“The city will help them go through the healing process.” 

“We’re going to move forward as a city, as a community. We’re going to be there for the families,” the mayor added. “The people that were victims of this tragic event, they were family members, they were coworkers, they were a vital part of the community of Virginia Beach, and they will not be forgotten.”