DELMAR, Del. (AP) - A Delaware police officer was seriously injured Sunday while responding to a fight at a housing subdivision in Delmar.
Police said Cpl. Keith Heacook suffered a traumatic head injury after he responded to a call shortly after 5 a.m. for a fight in progress at the Yorkshire Estates Community, The Daily times reported.
Delaware State Police said it was not immediately clear what happened inside the home, but police know Heacook was injured during a physical altercation.
Delmar police Chief Ivan Barkley said Heacook, a 22-year police veteran, responded to the call alone.
“This is not the call you want on a Sunday morning,” said Barkley, who was visibly shaken during a news conference.
“He is a husband, son, brother, and father. Keith is fighting for his life right now and he needs your prayers along with the elderly couple who were also injured,” Barkley said in a news release.
Police said dispatchers began checking on Heacook and received no response. Additional officers were then sent to the scene. A Wicomico County Sheriffs Office Deputy and a Delaware State Trooper arrived to find the officer unconscious in the residence.
Police said there was a separate, but related assault involving an elderly couple across the street from the original incident. Both of those victims also received significant injuries and were taken by ambulance to area hospitals.
Heacook was first transported to TidalHealth Peninsula Regional in Salisbury, but was later taken to R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, part of the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore.
Multiple people were taken into custody. State police are investigating both events.
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