3 Killed in Shooting at Oklahoma Walmart Parking Lot and Schools Were Temporarily Placed on Lockdown

Three people have reportedly been killed in a shooting that took place on Monday morning at a Walmart store in Duncan, Oklahoma. Reports are still coming in, but according to the Associated Press, local media citing the Oklahoma Highway Patrol confirmed that three people were fatally shot.

According to Reuters, a spokeswoman for the Duncan police department confirmed that there was a shooting at the Walmart but had no information on the victims’ conditions.

In an update posted on their official Facebook page about an hour ago, the department said:

"We are aware of reports of a shooting at Wal-Mart. We are gathering information and will provide an update as soon as one is available."

Daily Mail offered more details on the shooting. According to the outlet, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol revealed that a man wearing black opened fire at the store, which is located at 3393 North 81 Highway.

Officers from the Duncan Police Department have also reportedly confirmed that the gunman is dead, although no further details have been provided.

Daily Mail further reported that the shooting, which happened just before 10 am on Monday morning, took place in the parking lot of the store. Besides the deceased victims, it’s not sure if any other Walmart customers or employees were injured.

Aerial footage from Reuters reportedly shows officers roping off a large area of the crime scene and looking at a red vehicle that appears to have multiple bullet holes. A body is reportedly seen lying next to the red car.

Duncan Public School administration initiated a lockdown on schools within the area during the shooting and lifted it just before 11:30 am. Duncan, according to Reuters, is located about 80 miles (129 km) south of Oklahoma City and has a population of about 22,000 people.

Sadly, this shooting comes on the heels of similar incidents in the space of a few months. Only last week, a 16-year-old boy in Santa Clarita, California, opened fire at his school, killing two classmates before turning the gun on himself.

In eerily similar circumstances to the Duncan shooting, a man shot and killed 22 people in August inside a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas.

After that shooting, the giant retail company was said to have discontinued the sale of assault rifle and handgun ammunition in all their outlets. They also reportedly announced that customers would not be allowed to openly carry firearms inside their stores.

Per Daily Mail, as of November 1, 2019, Oklahoma passed a law to remove the license requirement for carrying concealed handguns, making the state even more gun-friendly.