Firefighters work at the scene where two police officers were injured while responding to reported standoff in East Lansdowne, Pa., on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
This story originally appeared on 6abc.
At least six people, including children, remain unaccounted for after a shooting and fire on Wednesday afternoon in East Lansdowne, Delaware County.
Gunfire at a home in the unit block of Lewis Avenue left two police officers injured. The house started going up in flames a short time later.
Due to the damage, it has been too dangerous for investigators to search the home. However, the search for bodies and evidence is expected to begin later Thursday.
District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer said officers were initially responding to a report of an 11-year-old shot around 3:45 p.m. Wednesday.
Police were immediately met by gunfire when they arrived. The identity of the person who fired on the officers is not yet known.
Two officers were each shot once and the suspect retreated into the home.
Upper Darby police quickly grabbed ballistic shields and dragged the injured officers to safety.
“I heard a lot of gunshots as I just came from the store and then I smelled the smoke about 10 minutes later. And I just seen cops come everywhere, running in their vests and everything,” said one resident. “I heard [them] yelling ‘active shooter, get in the house, barricade, don’t come out,'” a neighbor said.
Neighbor Derrick Richardson recorded cell phone video of the chaotic scene as officers helped an injured officer and called for a medic while they were under fire.
“It was very scary, it was very scary. My whole house was surrounded by police officers. Everybody had their guns drawn. Long rifles and the gunshots,” he said.
Chopper video also showed one officer being carried away from the scene and being put in an ambulance.
Upper Darby Superintendent Timothy Bernhardt described a volatile and dangerous scene when officers from his department responded to the home and were able to rescue the two wounded officers.
“All officers that were on scene initially were taking on fire, and then when they removed themselves from it, there was no more gunfire at that point,” Bernhardt said.
One was shot in the arm and the other in the leg. Both police officers were alert and talking at Penn Presbyterian Hospital in Philadelphia and are expected to be okay, according to officials.
“It was because of the Upper Darby Police Department, who also responded to that call, that these officers are alive today. They were dragged out of danger by Upper Darby police officers,” said Stollsteimer. “Everybody in law enforcement and Delaware County works together.”
One officer who was shot is from the East Lansdowne Police Department, while the other is from the Lansdowne Police Department. Their names have not been released, but Stollsteimer said they have been with their departments for two decades.
“I just can’t thank these officers and this team enough for the heroism displayed every single day by our police officers throughout the county, or particularly today. I can’t thank Upper Darby police officers enough for what they did to drag these two gentlemen away from the gunfire – or we might be having a whole different conversation tonight about what happened,” Stollsteimer added.
Stollsteimer said a person inside the home started a fire about 15 minutes after officers arrived.
Intense flames were initially seen rising from the roof and top floor of the three-story home before spreading to the lower levels, largely gutting the structure.
Authorities believe there may have been several people inside when it started.
“We know the victim’s family had a lot of people living in that house, including children. We are aware that there were at least six to eight people who were unaccounted for from that family,” said Stollsteimer.
The blaze raged on for hours as crews worked to get it under control. Fire crews were initially kept away from the scene due to the gunfire.
The massive plume of smoke could be seen across the community. It was so intense it was picked up on StormTracker 6 radar.
Further information on the missing individuals is expected to be revealed on Thursday once investigators can get inside the charred residence. There has also been no more information about the child who was reported wounded.
The whereabouts of the person who fired at the officers also weren’t clear, but Stollsteimer said there were “no threats to the community from that house.”