A firefighter was wounded by gunfire in Richmond County while responding to a fire alarm early Monday morning, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation reported. The incident occurred around 4:30 a.m. on Green Lake Road in Ellerbe, where the firefighter, later identified as Jerry Lyndon Shepard, was reportedly shot in the leg with an AR-style rifle by 54-year-old Timothy Lee Hayden, QC News and WSOCTV have detailed. The injured first responder was airlifted to UNC Chapel Hill for treatment.
The situation was further complicated as another firefighter, identified as Jerry Louis Scott, also came under fire, though he escaped unharmed the Richmond County Sheriff's Office took action arresting Hayden and charging him with two counts of assaulting emergency personnel and one count of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill or inflict serious injury Hayden is being held at the Richmond County Jail without bond and is expected to appear in court on September 11, this according to WCNC.
Further reporting from WCNC confirms that the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation is assisting local agencies in the investigation of the shooting, with a person arrested, though initial reports did not clarify the suspect's identity or charges, which have now been disclosed in subsequent releases. Both firefighters are members of the Ellerbe Fire Department, and the shooting has magnified concerns around the safety of first responders in the line of duty.
Ellerbe Fire Chief Will Barber spoke to the precarious nature of their work, stating, “I mean, you just absolutely never know what you’re walking into,” according to an interview with WSOCTV. He continued, “I mean the world we live in. It’s hard to imagine.” The assistant fire chief, though not named in the initial reports, is expected to recover from the injuries. The community and the firefighters' colleagues remain shaken by the event, awaiting further information as the investigation progresses.
