A 47-year-old former mill worker is in police custody facing murder charges in relation to the worst workplace shooting on Vancouver Island in recent memory.
The man opened fire in the parking lot of the Western Forest Products mill and an office inside the building.
Nanaimo RCMP said multiple 911 calls came in at 6:58 a.m. Mounties, including an emergency-response team member who was on shift, arrived at the scene within three minutes. The man surrendered peacefully and a shotgun was seized.
Police believe the man was acting alone, said Nanaimo RCMP detachment commander Staff Sgt. Mark Fisher.
The former employee, whose name has not been released, is in custody at the Nanaimo RCMP detachment.
Two people are dead and two remain in hospital with gunshot wounds. One man was airlifted to Victoria General Hospital and one man was taken to Nanaimo Regional General Hospital.
The names of the victims have not been released.
"This type of extreme violence is very rare," Fisher said at a press conference this afternoon.
He said it's too early to speculate on the motive for the shooting.
Nanaimo RCMP's serious crime investigators and forensic investigators continue to collect evidence.
Don Demens, CEO of Western Forest Products, confirmed the man is a former employee but would not say if the man was fired or speculate on why he may be disgruntled.
Demens said grief counsellors have been brought in to assist mill workers and family members.
All of Western Forest Products operations on the Island have been shut down out of respect for the victims, Demens said.
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