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UPDATE TWO: Man with shotgun detained after standoff outside Salmon Creek hospital

One-hour ordeal ends with surrender

By John Branton, Dave Kern
Published: February 17, 2011, 12:00am
3 Photos
Law enforcement debriefs after a standoff with an armed suicidal man at Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center, on Wednesday.
Law enforcement debriefs after a standoff with an armed suicidal man at Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center, on Wednesday. Photo Gallery

SWAT Team members took an armed man into custody about

9 p.m. Wednesday outside Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center, -following a 1 1/2 -hour standoff in the hospital’s northwest parking lot.

No shots were fired and no one was reported injured, said Sgt. Linda Hayes with the Clark County Sheriff’s Office.

The tense standoff began about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, when sheriff’s deputies radioed that a man outside the hospital had a gun and could be suicidal, according to emergency radio traffic monitored at The Columbian.

The man’s former wife had called 911 to say she’d spoken with him and he was suicidal in another parking area of the hospital.

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The man, in a Ford SUV, was found in the northwest parking lot. He called the hospital’s front desk to say he had a gun and needed mental-health assistance; hospital employees then called 911.

Clark County Sheriff’s Office deputies took positions outside the hospital and told hospital officials to lock the doors and not let anyone out.

The man’s name was not immediately available, Hayes said. He is thought to be about 45 and, after the standoff, was not arrested but was taken to a hospital for a mental-health evaluation, Hayes said.

In the end, the man had not threatened to hurt anyone and had not pointed the gun at anyone, Hayes said.

When the standoff began, two trained negotiators were called and spoke with the man on his cell phone. Two officers took positions nearby in chase cars in case the man drove away.

Officers called for assistance from the Vancouver Police Department, to help block roads in the area and to keep motorists away from the standoff scene in case shots were fired or a pursuit ensued.

Officers called for ballistic shields, a Bearcat armored vehicle and other vehicles to -surround the man’s vehicle.

Officers wanted to make sure the man couldn’t drive away. He was believed to be armed with a long gun, which turned out to be a shotgun.

Some nearby deputies were warned they could be in other officers’ field of fire and should take “hard cover” if the man drove away.

With negotiators working to speak with the man, approaching officers were told to turn off their sirens about 8:15 p.m., apparently to avoid upsetting him further.

About 8:45 p.m., an officer radioed, “It looks like he’s getting agitated.”

Shortly before 9 p.m., officers radioed that the man was talking about coming out.

However, he had started the engine of the vehicle. Officers were told his hands were seen moving and he might have “racked” a shell into the gun. Nearby officers could see the gun’s barrel through a window of the vehicle.

Then an officer said the man was talking about safely exiting the SUV.

The man was ordered to put the gun on the vehicle’s floor and throw the shells out with his left hand. He also was told to put both of his hands outside, in view of officers, before he exited the vehicle.

Nearby officers radioed he was outside and 20 feet in front of the vehicle, and were told to make sure he didn’t get back in the SUV.

At 9:03 p.m., officers radioed, “SWAT 1 advising one in custody.”

The hospital building that was exposed to any possible gunfire from the parking lot was the four-story medical office- building, said Brian Willoughby-, the hospital’s spokesman.

Willoughby said he was told a doctor and two housekeepers were in that building. They were evacuated to the safety of the main hospital building.

Hospital employees locked it down during the standoff and, as is standard practice, incoming ambulances were diverted to other hospitals, and no problems were reported, Willoughby- said.

Sheriff’s deputies and other officers did a good job dealing with the standoff, Willoughby said.

Sgt. Hayes, who coordinated the operation, said many police officers were called out because of the dangers to folks in the hospital, and also dangers to people on foot and in cars.

John Branton: 360-735-4513 or john.branton@columbian.com.

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