Lansdowne neighborhood reacts to house fire, shooting that left 2 officers injured: "It was chaos"
LANSDOWNE, pa - A Delaware County community is reacting after a house fire and shooting occurred in East Lansdowne Wednesday afternoon, leaving two police officers injured and six to eight people unaccounted for.
An emergency response unlike any residents said they've seen in Lansdowne before.
"I heard it when it happened and I went back in the house. I came back outside and it was chaos," said Tynell Wescott.
Emergency vehicles from around the county locked down intersection after intersection throughout the evening as a criminal investigation continues.
At least 6 unaccounted for in East Lansdowne fire, shooting that injured 2 officers: DA
Two police officers are in stable condition after they were shot while responding to a call for a child shot in East Lansdowne Wednesday afternoon.
"I was at work when it all transpired. Then I got home and seen all the chaos," said Robin Jones. She and her fiancé Tynell Wescott live near Baltimore and Lewis Avenue where the shootings and fire happened. After work they rushed to Smart Center daycare a block and a half away from the scene.
"They just said they locked down and we had to call and let them know we were coming," said Wescott about picking up their son from daycare which was hectic.
"Traffic is crazy. We really live two blocks away but we had to drive maybe 7 or 8 blocks just to get maybe two blocks down to park. Then we had to walk down and get him. I do not know how we are getting home," said Wescott.
Carol O'Neill says she watched it all unfold from her home.
"I was sitting in the living room and all of a sudden I hear gunfire. All of a sudden all of these police cars are flying up the street," she said.
The intense response had the Delaware County neighborhood on what felt like a lockdown.
A part of Baltimore Avenue is a heavy business corridor, but tonight some stores went dark.
Some were forced to shut down after road closures and detours halted car traffic and a lot of foot traffic.
"Off the Hook down there did shut down a little bit earlier. We decided to remain open," said Christos Moscharis. He is the manager at Italian Kitchen near Baltimore and Penn Boulevard.
"It's extremely difficult for us. We do a delivery system here and we also accept Doordash as well and a lot of those drivers coming down a lot of these areas down the street have been blocked off," he said.
Their delivery time shifted move from 45 minutes to an hour to now an hour and a half. They can get back the business, but what Moscharis says he is praying for is the best possible outcome for those directly affected by the tragedy.
"I hope we can recover from it and that everyone is ok from the situation," he said.
Italian Kitchen made pizzas to take down to emergency crews.
Some of them remained on shift overnight until the investigation resumes Thursday morning.