Two police officers are dead following a shooting in an Innisfil, Ont., home.
In a news release, South Simcoe Police Service said its officers responded to a call at a home near 25th Sideroad and 9th Line shortly before 8 p.m. on Tuesday.
According to police, two officers were shot while inside the home. A suspect was also shot and killed.
Police have not said what the initial call was for. The Town of Innisfil is just south of Barrie and home to more than 43,300 people. The police officers were called to a home on a tree-lined residential street close to Lake Simcoe.
Both officers were rushed to a local hospital, where one died. Police say the second officer was then airlifted to Toronto in critical condition. Shortly after 7:30 a.m. police announced the the second officer had also died.
The release says Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) is now investigating, which happens when a person is seriously injured or killed as a result of a police interaction. In a news release, Ontario’s police watchdog said it has assigned a total of nine investigators to the case.
The SIU said according to preliminary information, officers were called to a home “for a disturbance.” They exchanged gunfire with a 23-year-old man, who died at the scene, the news release said.
York Regional Police are also investigating the shooting of the two police officers.
South Simcoe Chief John Van Dyke is expected to address the media at 1 p.m. ET.
The two South Simcoe officers are the third and fourth police officers to be killed in the province in the last month.
On Sept. 12, Toronto Police Const. Andrew Hong was killed in what police called an “ambush” during a series of shootings that killed another man and wounded three others.
On Sept. 14, York Regional Police Const. Travis Gillespie died at the scene of a head-on car crash.
Both constables were laid to rest late last month.
In a tweet, Premier Doug Ford said he was “heartbroken” by the news.
“We are praying for the officers’ families and all the police officers who put their lives on the line to protect our communities,” he said.
Across the province, first responders also took to social media to extend their condolences.
“I offer our deepest sympathies to the families of these two fallen officers,” wrote Toronto Police Chief James Ramer.
“The thoughts of OPP members are with the families,” wrote OPP Commissioner Thomas Carrique.
Peel police offered condolences “with a heavy heart,” while Paul Raftis, chief of Toronto Paramedic Services, said its members’ “hearts are with all those affected by the tragic events that took place last night.”
