"I never did see him. We just heard bullets," Lewis said. "He was running all over the plant, chasing people."
Another employee, a man armed with a long gun and a pistol, pulled into the parking lot of the plant where about 1,000 people work, manufacturing lawn mowers, and started shooting. He walked inside, where he shot three people near the front office, Harvey County Sheriff T. Walton said later.
After hearing shots, Jeff Lusk, who was at Excel for an interview at 5 p.m., said he saw the shooter and then got under a desk.
A Hesston police officer arrived at the plant within two minutes after people began calling into Harvey County dispatch saying shots were fired. A police officer entered the building. The gunman fired at the officer.
The officer shot back, killing the attacker.
The shooting rampage started in Newton, 8 miles away, lasted less than a half-hour, leaving four dead, including the gunman, and 14 others injured, shaking this town of 3,700.
It would be the 33rd mass shooting in the United States so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. And it's only February.
“We talked about, it can’t happen here, and everybody says it can’t happen here, but it’s all those places that it happens at, and here we are," Walton said. "It happened here.”
Hospitals in nearby Newton and Wichita began receiving the wounded. Five were reported in serious condition, two in fair condition, at Via Christi Hospital St. Francis, said communications and public relations director Roz Hutchinson.
Six people were sent to Wesley Medical Center, where they remain in stable condition. Four people went to Newton Medical Center and are in stable condition.
Walton said authorities were still adding up the list of casualties late Thursday night and are in the process of interviewing some 200 people.
The deceased were still being identified and families notified into the evening by the Harvey County Coroner, Walton said.
“This is just a horrible incident that’s happened in Hesston, Harvey County," Walton said. "There’s going to be a lot of sad people before it’s all over."
Talk about the gunman raced through this small town, although authorities did not release his name Thursday. Walton said they were investigating what triggered the violence, but he stressed it was not an act of terrorism.
Deputies and police are investigating as many as five crime scenes.
The sheriff said the afternoon of violence began with a man shot in the shoulder while driving a truck near 12th and Meridian in Newton. The first of the injured called 911 and gave a description of a gray Dodge Charger.
The shooter drove his own toward 81 highway, where he shot a person in the leg at Meridian and Hesston Road, Walton said. The gunman stole that person's car and proceeded to Excel, where the killings began just after 5 p.m.
Walton said the first officer on the scene, who shot the attacker, saved the lives of many employees at the plant.
"He's a hero as far as I'm concerned," Walton said. The sheriff said the officer would be named later.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the sheriff's office, Newton Police Department, Hesston Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were on scene.
SWAT officers went to the 2000 block of Wagon Wheel Drive in Newton, where the gunman lived, to search his house. Upon arriving, Walton said officers found someone in the house, possibly a roommate, who would not leave.
Meanwhile, several community facilities went on lockdown during the night.
Newton Medical Center went on lockdown before 8 p.m. due to the police activity to ensure the safety of their patients and staff, said marketing director Leslie Helmer.
Newton Recreation Commission also went on lockdown shortly thereafter until it closed at 10 p.m.
Hesston College was on lockdown as a precautionary measure for about 90 minutes, said Jim Mason, campus facilities director.
The college held a prayer service around 8:30 p.m. and had crisis counselors on site. Many of the students and faculty had family and friends who work at Excel.
The American Red Cross was called to help assist those in need.
Condolences came from Gov. Sam Brownback and a call came to the sheriff's office from the White House.
Ron Johnson said he knows at least four people who were shot. He said everyone in town will know someone killed or injured at the plant that employs around 1,000 people.
Harlan Bartel was leaving work from another building when he heard about the shooting from others who work at the plant.
"I got in my car and went home," Bartel said.
Lewis said she was just glad to be going home from her first day at work.
Excel Industries will be closed Friday as the investigation continues.
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