Milwaukee witnessed one of the city's deadliest shooting incident as a gunman stormed the Molson Coors complex firing shots, killing five of the facility's workers before turning the gun and shooting himself, February 27.
According to CNN, the gunman was 51 years old and an active employee at the facility. The company did not identify the name of the shooter and did not provide details on the possible motives for the shooting. They also did not disclose any of the other victim's identities as they are still pending to notify the families.
The police, however, were able to confirm that all the people killed were employees of Molson Coors and were found inside the same building.
Milwaukee City Mayor Tome Barrett said in a statement that the five individuals who were killed went to work that day just like everybody else thinking they were to finish their day and then return to their families, which they never will after the tragedy.
There were about 1,000 people working at the Molson Coors campus when the authorities received reports of a shooting around 2:08 in the afternoon. Chief Alfonso Morales said that the complex where the incident happened includes a mixture of corporate offices and brewing facilities.
Just a few minutes later, employees of the complex received text messages and emails from the company warning them about the gunman and the shooting and advising that they complex is still under lockdown.
Police officers, SWAT teams and FBI agents flocked around the scene and were seen rushing around the Miller Valley neighborhood named after the iconic brewery that has been around for 160 years.
The fire dispatch audio called the scene chaotic and responders who were first on the scene dubbed it as a "war zone."
According to Fox6Now, when the police arrived at the scene of the shooting, employees were screened and checked one by one as the police secured the area. Employees were allowed to go home a few hours later.
According to Lt. Gov.Mandela Barnes of Wisconsin, this incident marks the 11th mass shooting that happened in the state since 2004.
Barnes referred to the incident as another American tragedy, which should not have happened, but unfortunately occured in their city. He said that he hated to admit that the incident once again happened in his backyard.
The shooting took place amid Molson Coors hosting an annual conference in Texas. The Company's CEO Gavin Hattersley immediately fled the said event when he heard of the incident that has taken place.
The CEO described the shooting as an unthinkable tragedy that has dawned on their company. Corporate offices in the complex will be closed for the rest of the week and breweries will stay closed until further announcements are made.
United States President Donald Trump referred to the shooter as a "wicked murderer" and offered his condolences to the victims and their families.
A vigil will be held in remembrance of the victims on Thursday, 7:00 PM at the Ridge Community Church, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
