Idaho Shooting Kills Two Firefighters as Gunman Started Wildfire

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A man armed with a rifle started a wildfire on Sunday and then began shooting at firefighters and emergency personnel in the mountain community of Northern Idaho, United States (U.S.). This shooting killed two firefighters and injured a third during a series of gunfire over several hours, according to authorities as reported by Newsday.

The order for shelter-in-place was lifted on Sunday night. This came after tactical response teams used cell phone data to "hone in" the area in the forest where they found the suspect's body with a firearm nearby as the fire rapidly approached, said Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris.

Officials did not release the name of the perpetrator or the type of weapon found.

“We do believe that the suspect started the fire, and we do believe that it was an ambush and it was intentional,” Norris said at a Sunday night news conference. “These firefighters did not have a chance.”

Sheriff's deputies said that officers were responding to a fire at Canfield Mountain, just north of Coeur d'Alene at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. Gunfire was reported about half an hour later.

Investigators said the armed man acted alone. “We believe that was the only shooter that was on that mountain at that time,” said Norris.

Three victims were taken to Kootenai Health, said hospital spokesperson Kim Anderson.

Two people died upon arrival and the third was treated for injuries, Anderson said. The injured firefighter was "fighting for his life" after surgery and is in stable condition, Norris said.

The situation turned chaotic as the brush fire burned and firefighters rushed to the scene but were instead met with heavy gunfire.

First responders made an emergency call for help over their radios:  “Everybody’s shot up here ... send law enforcement now,” according to one dispatch.

The leader of Idaho's Republican Party in the House of Representatives said in a statement, "We are horrified by the murder of two firefighters in Coeur d’Alene, and shocked by such a vicious attack on our first responders. We are praying for them, the injured, their families and their colleagues.”

Coeur d'Alene is a city of 55,000 people near the Idaho-Washington border.

Canfield Mountain is a popular hiking and biking area on the outskirts of the city, covered with dense trees and brush and crisscrossed with trails leading into national forest.

Fires have always been a major concern for the area, said Bruce Deming, whose property abuts the trail system. When he saw smoke on the ridge on Sunday afternoon, he wondered why there were no firefighting helicopters coming.

When a friend sent a brief message to let him know about the shooting, he realized why he hadn't seen any planes flying, “Because they’re concerned about being shot at,” he said.

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