Two seniors are dead after two apparent shootings inside the emergency department of a hospital in Cobourg. Ontario's Special Investigations Unit is involved in the case.
A 70-year-old man and his 76-year-old wife were admitted to Northumberland Hills Hospital with unconfirmed ailments on Friday night. Hospital President and CEO Linda Davis says the couple had been triaged and were in a room within the ER where patients wait for test results or further treatment.
At about 11 p.m. the sound of at least one gunshot was heard coming from that room.
SIU investigator Jon Ansell tells NEWSTALK 1010's sister station CP24 a nurse went into the room and discovered the woman with a head wound. However, the SIU cannot confirm if the wound was caused by a gunshot or something else.
A call went out to 911. Two Cobourg Police officers went to the hospital where they encountered the 70-year-old man. The SIU says both officers fired their guns, and the man was shot and killed.
Efforts to revive the 76-year-old woman were unsuccessful.
The SIU is probing the shooting of the man while Ontario Provincial Police are investigating the death of the woman.
Patients at Northumberland Hills Hospital were asked to stay in their rooms but continued to receive to care. Ambulances were redirected to other hospitals overnight. The measure had been dropped by 9 a.m. Saturday.
Linda Davis says hospital staff are prepared for an event like this one.
"Our staff are trained in critical incidences and they performed very professionally and very well. However any such event does have an emotional impact."
Davis added that the hospital will continue to offer support to staff while examining whether anything could have been done differently.
With files from Claude Feig