“We were kind of sitting ducks,” Brant said. “Luckily, he didn’t see us in there, and we didn’t make eye contact with him.”
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl stopped short of confirming the gunman was shot by a University of Pittsburgh police officer. But he added that “police acted admirably and did engage in gunfire.”
“There’s no doubt that their swift response saved lives today,” Ravenstahl said.
Officials at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center said they were treating five patients aged 35 to 64, including two who had undergone surgery. The hospital isn’t releasing patient names, but said a 49-year-old man and a 64-year-old woman were still listed in serious condition Friday morning.
John Leight Sr., of Shaler Township, told the AP that the 64-year-old woman is his wife, Kathryn Leight, a receptionist at the clinic, but otherwise declined comment when reached at home.
“At this point I still don’t know what happened,” he said.
Leight’s son, John Jr., told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the family has been told his 64-year-old stepmother had been shot four times and underwent emergency surgery. He said the woman remained in intensive care, but had been taken off a ventilator and was breathing on her own.
Two others were treated and released, according the hospital officials.
One of the injured was a police officer who was grazed by a bullet. The injured people included employees and a visitor, said Dr. Donald Yealy, chair of emergency medicine at the university’s medical school.
The clinic is a couple of miles from downtown, near the heart of the Pitt campus and its affiliated medical center.
Pitt sent out email and text alerts shortly after 2 p.m. to warn people of the shooting.
“An active shooter has been identified at Western Psychiatric Institute. Several injured,” the alert said. “Possible second actor in Western Psych. Lockdown recommended until further notice. If safe to do so, tell others of this message.”
Reports about a possible second gunman and a hostage situation at the clinic or at a nearby hospital were unfounded, UPMC spokesman Paul Wood said later.
Ravenstahl said authorities are still investigating whether the gunman reached the second floor of the clinic building, since there were reports of shell casings there.
SWAT teams shut the street off and adjacent buildings were put on lockdown. But a few blocks away people went on with their business. Most students are on spring break, though offices and buildings are open.
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