Manhunt Underway For Suspect In TV Weatherman Shooting

Authorities were searching for a gunman after a TV weatherman was shot multiple times during an altercation Wednesday in the parking lot outside KCEN-TV’s studio.

The Texas Department of Public Safety says the shooting occurred around 9:15 a.m. at the studio on Interstate 35, which is located near Bruceville-Eddy, or roughly 75 miles north of Austin. As of now, police say they have no motive and it is unclear if the shooter has any ties to the station.

The station website reports the suspect briefly exchanged words with on-air TV meteorologist Patrick Crawford, then pulled out a handgun and shot him approximately 13 times. Crawford backed his car away from the shooter and drove up to a highway construction crew that promptly called 911. According to the station’s news director Jim Hice, Crawford was wounded in the shoulder and the abdomen.

The shooter was described as a white male in his 30s, and police say he fled the scene. WacoTrib.com reported that Crawford was stable and resting after undergoing surgery. Trooper D.L. Wilson said law enforcement was constructing a forensic map of the scene and said it was still not clear if Crawford knew the suspect.

Officials stopped a man who tried to flee when confronted by police during the search, the paper reported. But the man was ruled out as a suspect and was reportedly running due to outstanding warrants.

Police were taking precaution and schools in the districted were in lockdown during the hunt. Employees at the station were not allowed to leave until the evening.