A shooting at an In N Out Burger restaurant in Twin Falls left at least three people dead and several others injured Saturday afternoon, police said.
The suspected shooter was among those killed, Police Chief Matthew Hicks said at an evening news conference. He said officers believe the threat to the community has ended.
Officers from city, county, state and federal agencies responded to reports of gunfire at the restaurant on Blue Lakes Boulevard North around 2:30 p.m., Hicks said.
What We Know So Far
Hicks said he could not yet confirm exact numbers for those killed or wounded, and officials were still notifying next of kin Saturday evening. A city spokesperson, Josh Palmer, said at least two people were hurt and that the number was expected to rise.
Twin Falls County Commissioner Brent Reinke said Sheriff Jack Johnson told him five people had been injured. The competing figures from local officials had not been reconciled as of Saturday night.
The identity and motive of the suspected shooter remained under investigation, Hicks said. It was not immediately clear whether the gunman was included in the official death count.
Witness Lane Koehn, 34, said he was stopped at a nearby traffic light when he saw a man carrying a rifle come out of the restaurant’s drive through lane. Koehn said a separate man carrying a handgun then opened fire on the gunman.
Koehn said he watched an employee in an In N Out uniform drag a wounded coworker across the parking lot before paramedics arrived. “She was pretty bad off,” Koehn said, adding that he did not know her condition afterward.
Police temporarily ordered people in the area to shelter in place before lifting the order later Saturday and reopening nearby roads, Palmer said. A Chick fil A location near the scene closed for the rest of the day as a precaution, and the nearby Magic Valley Mall was also closed with people inside told to remain in place.
What Authorities Are Saying
Hicks described the scene as chaotic, given the restaurant’s location near a busy retail area that also includes a movie theater complex. He said hundreds of potential witnesses were expected to be interviewed.
“We believe the threat to the community is over,” Hicks said, adding that the suspected shooter is deceased.
Idaho Gov. Brad Little asked residents for prayers as law enforcement and first responders worked the scene, according to a statement he posted on social media. The FBI said it was aware of the situation and had offered assistance to local investigators, an agency spokesperson said.
St. Luke’s Magic Valley, a nearby medical center, said in a statement that it was coordinating closely with law enforcement and emergency crews as they responded.
In N Out’s chief operating officer, Denny Warnick, said the company was heartbroken and that its thoughts were with customers, employees and their families. The Irvine, California based chain said it was assisting Twin Falls police with the investigation.
Why This Matters
The restaurant involved in Saturday’s shooting is the fourth In N Out location in Idaho and had opened less than a week earlier, on July 24, according to the company. Its location in a heavily trafficked shopping corridor, near a mall, a movie theater and other major retailers, meant the potential exposure to the public was significant, a factor Hicks emphasized in describing the scene as exceptionally chaotic.
Twin Falls, a city of roughly 56,000 people about 130 miles southeast of Boise and 75 miles north of the Nevada border, is not a place that typically sees this scale of violence, and the shooting is likely to prompt broader conversations locally about security at retail and dining locations that draw large weekend crowds.
The presence of an armed bystander who confronted the gunman, as described by witness Lane Koehn, adds a detail investigators will likely scrutinize closely as they reconstruct the sequence of the shooting and determine how the confrontation unfolded.
What Happens Next
Investigators are continuing to interview witnesses and are asking anyone with information to come forward. Authorities have not released the identities of the victims or the suspected shooter, and next of kin notifications were ongoing as of Saturday evening.
Police have not said when they expect to release an official casualty count or details on a possible motive. The FBI’s involvement suggests the investigation could expand beyond local jurisdiction depending on what investigators find in the coming days.
Reporting drawn from NBC News, the Associated Press and ABC News
