Members of the emergency response team arrived at the scene at the Bank of Montreal in Saanich, Vancouver Island, near the US state of Washington, around 11 a.m. (1800 GMT), law enforcement officials said. “This remains an ongoing police incident with a strong police presence in the area,” Saanich police said on its website. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register “Homes and businesses close to the scene have been evacuated due to the presence of a possible explosive device in a vehicle associated with the suspects.” Police later said they were lifting a housing order, but that the block near the bank remained closed due to a possible bomb. The suspects were “heavily armed” and initial reports indicate they were wearing armor, Saanich Police Chief Dean Duthie told a news conference. Six police officers were taken to hospital with gunshot wounds, some of whom would be released soon, but others “suffered serious injuries and were taken to surgery,” Dutti said. The video posted on social media shows police officers and a police dog being chased on foot by the sound of gunfire. Police asked any witnesses to submit evidence videos, CBC News reported. “From what I know of this chaotic, tragic, dynamic, violent scene, the fact that no civilians were injured in any way is truly astonishing,” Duthie said. Prime Minister Justin Trinto said on Twitter that he was “shocked and saddened” by the violence. “I hold in my thoughts the police officers who were injured in today’s shooting – and their colleagues who also rushed to the danger to keep people safe,” Trindo said. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Kevin Light in Saanich. Additional references by Rami Ayyub in Washington. Costas Pitas writes. Editing: Tim Ahmann, Stephen Coates and Michael Perry Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
