A family Sunday dinner in Billings, Montana turned into one of the deadliest domestic mass shootings in the country this year, after 44-year-old Alan Smith opened fire on relatives gathered at his parents' home before setting the house ablaze and killing himself. Eight people died, including four children, and investigators say the victims spanned four generations of a blended family.
The 911 call came in at 6:01 p.m. on August 23, with gunshots audible in the background, according to BNO News. Officers arrived at the home on White Star Circle at 6:12 p.m. and heard more gunshots coming from out back, per facts drawn from KIRO 7 News Seattle's report from the Associated Press. By 6:15 p.m., smoke was rising from the residence, and the structure was soon fully engulfed in flames.
Among those killed were 12-year-old Charlotte Ghekiere and her 15-year-old brother Landon Ghekiere, along with their stepsiblings, 13-year-old Owen Ireland and 7-year-old Chloe Ireland. Charlotte tried to save her family and called 911 herself, per the AP report carried by KIRO 7. Also killed was Megan Ghekiere, the children's mother, along with Alan Smith's parents, Dana and Barb Smith, his grandmother, and his younger sister.
A Firefighter Learned of the Blaze Over the Radio
Adam Ghekiere, an airport rescue firefighter, was on duty at an airshow when he overheard emergency radio traffic describing a fire at his in-laws' home, according to The Secret List. His children Landon and Charlotte, his wife Megan, and his stepchildren Owen and Chloe all died in the attack. Ghekiere noted that his children would not normally have visited their grandparents that particular Sunday evening, the outlet reported.
Barbara Alice Smith, 72, a former Animal Health Technician at the University of Calgary, died alongside her husband Dana Leigh Smith and six other family members, per a report from thisjournal.site. The couple had bought a house in Billings near their daughter's home, according to the AP account relayed by KIRO 7. Brad Ireland, who identified Alan Smith as the shooter, described the family as a hermit who had struggled for years, and said Smith had no recorded arrests or criminal charges in either Montana or Washington.
Parents Had Asked Him to Move Out Weeks Earlier
Smith had lived with his parents in Montana for years after being unable to find or hold a job, according to the AP reporting distributed by KIRO 7. His parents had asked him to move out a couple of weeks before the shooting, and he returned to their home that Sunday evening. He opened fire on family members gathered for dinner before setting the house on fire and trying to flee, only to be confronted by law enforcement; he died after suffering a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Jennifer Mercer, a family member quoted in the AP report, described the family as very loving and close. Brad Ireland and Megan Ghekiere had divorced six years before the article's publication, and Megan had moved to Montana with her children afterward. The Smith family originated in the Seattle area, and Alan Smith had attended Eastern Washington University, per the same account.
Water Shortage Slowed the Fire Response
Billings Fire Department crews could not begin fighting the fire immediately because the scene had not been secured against the active gunfire, allowing the blaze to consume the home, according to a report cited by KHQ. Fire Chief Matt Hoppel said firefighters also faced a severe water shortage, since the subdivision has no fire hydrants, forcing crews to shuttle water in by tanker truck until the fire was finally extinguished around 1 a.m. The house ultimately burned down to its foundation.
The subdivision sits outside Billings' municipal limits, meaning it is not subject to city infrastructure requirements that mandate fire hydrants, leaving rural fire units dependent on mobile water tenders during major blazes. Interim Yellowstone County Sheriff Kent O'Donnell and Police Sergeant Jeff Stovall said the extensive structural collapse and fire debris severely complicated evidence recovery, according to a report from Anadolu Ajansı. Investigators had to confirm the site was stable before they could begin sifting through the burned foundation for evidence.
Part of a Troubling National Pattern
The Billings shooting was the 22nd mass killing recorded in the United States in 2026, and 15 of those 22 incidents stemmed from domestic disputes, according to the AP/USA Today/Northeastern University Mass Killing Database as reported by Newsday. Northeastern criminologist James Alan Fox noted that domestic-dispute killings this year have exceeded their average share of roughly 50 percent of U.S. mass killings. It was the deadliest U.S. mass shooting since April 2026, when a Louisiana father fatally shot eight children and wounded two women, Newsday reported.
Research from the same AP/USA Today/Northeastern database, published through AP Projects, has found that roughly 67 percent of all U.S. mass killings occur in or around private residences, with nearly half involving family members killed by a single perpetrator. Montana has operated as a statewide permitless concealed carry state since House Bill 102 took effect in 2021, allowing eligible residents and visitors 18 and older to carry firearms without a permit, background check, or waiting period, according to Alien Gear Holsters. Open questions remain, including the precise forensic findings on how the fire started, official cause-of-death determinations for each victim, and whether any warning signs preceded the eviction request Smith's parents made weeks before the shooting.
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