HAMPTON, Va. — Believing there was little danger of further violence, Hampton University officials waited nearly two hours to alert students after three people _ including the shooter _ were shot early Sunday morning in the lobby of an on-campus dormitory.
The shooting occurred around 1 a.m. Sunday when a former student walked onto campus and shot the 62-year-old night manager of Harkness Hall, as well as a 43-year-old pizza delivery driver, said Hampton, Va., police spokeswoman Paula Ensley.
He was carrying three weapons, according to HU President William Harvey.
The first alert _ sent by text message, e-mail and an automated message to dorm phones, was sent out at 3 a.m., Harvey said.
Hampton Police are heading the ongoing investigation and declined to comment on the type of weapons the gunman was carrying.
Charges are pending and may be filed by the end of the day, according to Ensley.
The former student, an 18-year-old from the Richmond, Va., area who voluntarily withdrew from the school in November 2008, then turned the gun on himself, Ensley said.
The man was currently living in New York, where his mother also lives, said Harvey.
His father is a Richmond resident and his brother lives in Norfolk, Va., said Harvey.All three people shot were airlifted to area hospitals, and were listed in stable condition. The night monitor has been released from the hospital, Harvey said at an on-campus press conference at 4 p.m. Sunday.
“It doesn’t appear at this time that the injuries are life threatening,” Ensley added.
No current students were injured in the shooting, police said.
Harvey repeatedly praised police and emergency responders Sunday afternoon for their professionalism and swift action.
“The fact that they responded so quickly, so affectively, so professionally, may well have avoided further tragedy,” he said.
“This is a tragedy. We are fortunate that no students were involved. … I continue to believe that Hampton University is one of the safest campuses anywhere.”
Both Hampton police and Hampton University police were investigating, with city police leading the investigation, Ensley said.
- Peter Dujardin and Dan Parsons