A North Carolina firefighter is shot while responding to a fire alarm call

ELLERBE, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina firefighter was shot while responding to a call for a fire alarm on Monday morning in Ellerbe, according to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office and North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.

One fire truck and one firefighter in a personal vehicle responded to the scene, where they were met with gunfire and a firefighter was hit. Deputies responded and took a suspect into custody. The injured firefighter was airlifted to a trauma center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The suspect is charged with two counts of assault on emergency personnel with a firearm and one count of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill or inflict serious injury. The State Bureau of Investigation was called in to help. As of Monday afternoon, they were still collecting evidence at the scene and had no comment on a possible motive.