Panicked Arkansas grocery store shoppers hid in freezer and ran for cover amid shooting that killed 3 and wounded 10

Families were shopping at a local grocery store in a small Arkansas town on Friday when shoppers and passersby heard an alarming sound that some thought was fireworks and others thought was something falling, but later all they heard was police sirens and people running away.

Families were shopping at a local grocery store in a small Arkansas town on Friday when the sound of gunfire reverberated through the store, sending them running for cover or huddling in a freezer. Katrina Doherty – who had been shopping for dinner with her 18-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son – said she first thought she heard the sound of something falling but then saw glass shatter and someone drop to the ground. That’s when she knew shots were being fired. Outside, David Rodriguez was pulling into a gas station when he heard “pops” that he initially thought were fireworks. He then noticed the grocery store’s front windows were broken – as if they had been “shot open” by gunfire, Rodriguez said. Panicked shoppers then started running away as gunshots were fired rapidly, Rodriguez said. A man had opened fire at the Mad Butcher in Fordyce, killing three people and wounding 10 others. Law enforcement responded around 11:30 a.m. and exchanged gunfire with the “lone suspect,” according to Arkansas State Police. Cellphone video captured a man in the parking lot aiming a long gun and firing in multiple directions.