LEILA FADEL, HOST:
West Texas is reeling after another mass shooting, less than 30 days since the attack in El Paso. This time, it was on the roads of Odessa, Texas. A gunman terrorized pedestrians and drivers, killing seven people and injuring more than a dozen others before he was killed by police. Marfa Public Radio's Mitch Borden has this report.
MITCH BORDEN, BYLINE: It began with a failed traffic stop. Police say two Texas Department Public Safety officers pulled over a car headed into Odessa. As it was slowing down, the driver, an unidentified white man in his 30s, turned around with a rifle and opened fire, shooting through his rear window, injuring one of the officers. Then the gunman took off, continuing to fire, seemingly at random. These three people were among the witnesses.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Then I just heard seven or eight gunshots.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: All I saw when I came out was cops going down that way, and then they came back this way.
LARRY SHORES: All happened so fast, like I said. It was just chaotic.
BORDEN: That last witness was Larry Shores, who was wounded slightly in the shooting. He was on his way to work when he was stopped at an intersection near a shopping center when he first heard gunfire.
SHORES: And it was three shots. The first shot - I heard it hit my truck. Light turned green - I started taking off.
BORDEN: At least two bullets hit his truck on the driver's side.
SHORES: It went through my windshield - through right here. You could see where it's popped out at. Ricocheted on my arm, but other than that, that's it.
BORDEN: Shores says police responded within seconds. Odessa police Chief Mike Gerke says local law enforcement teamed up to chase down the shooter.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
MIKE GERKE: This was a joint effort by just a multitude of departments to find this animal and bring him to justice.
BORDEN: Initially, it was reported that there were multiple gunmen in different cars - a gold sedan and a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier. Gerke told reporters the shooter had hijacked a mail truck, and that spurred on rumors of a second shooter.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
GERKE: At one point, we didn't know that that was the same person, though that is confirmed now - same person.
BORDEN: Law enforcement pursued the lone gunman to a local movie theater. There, gunfire was exchanged, and the subject was killed. In his wake, he left at least seven dead and at least 18 injured.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
RUSSELL TIPPIN: When you go to bed tonight with your families, you need to grab them, hold on tight because nobody's guaranteed the next day.
BORDEN: A 17-month-old who was wounded and medevacked to another hospital is alive but the toddler's condition is unknown. And at least one local student is among the dead. Police have not released the names of the victims or the shooter. They still don't know the gunman's motive and haven't revealed the type of rifle he was using. Texas Governor Greg Abbott shared his condolences with Odessans and will visit the city today.
For NPR News, I'm Mitch Borden in Odessa, Texas. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.