Henderson, Ky. — An angry employee opened fire at a western Kentucky plastics plant after an argument early Wednesday, shooting a supervisor and four others before committing suicide, police and a company official said.
The killings stunned the sleepy Ohio River town of about 28,000 people, where a local leader said many residents know or are related to a worker at the plant.
"Our whole community is in shock," Henderson County Judge-Executive Sandy Watkins said.
The rampage began shortly after midnight, when the employee, a press operator, began arguing with a supervisor and was escorted from the building, company CEO Bud Philbrook told The Associated Press.
As the employee was leaving, he took out a gun, shot the supervisor, then charged back into a break room and shot several employees. Then he returned to the floor and shot another employee before killing himself, Philbrook said. Between 35 and 40 workers were inside the factory at the time.
"It's just total shock. It's something you read about in the paper," Philbrook said.
Officials are trying to determine the nature of the argument the employee had with his supervisor, Philbrook said. "There's certainly no record of untoward activity or performance prior to this situation," he said.
It wasn't clear if the employee was carrying the gun, or if he retrieved it after the argument. Under Kentucky law, business owners are allowed to prohibit people from bringing weapons onto the premises.
"We don't know if the gun was in the car or if he went somewhere to get it," Henderson police Lt. David Piller said.
At least one other person was injured, police said. The wounded victim was taken to St. Mary's Hospital and Medical Center in Evansville, Ind., spokeswoman Cheryl Dauble said. That person was in critical care, she said, but declined to release further information.
The names of the gunman and the victims were not released. However, Henderson County Coroner Bruce Farmer confirmed the supervisor was among the dead. He said autopsies for all six were planned Wednesday.
Four of the victims were members of St. Michael's Catholic Church in Sebree, Ky., said the Rev. Jason McClure, who had spent much of the morning with the victims' families. McClure declined to identify those who were killed, at the request of the Henderson County coroner, but said their families and fellow parishioners were shocked by the shootings.
"They are very upset and hurting deeply and just trying to figure out what to do next," McClure said.
Hours after the shooting, police had set up a roadblock on the street leading to the plant, which is in an industrial area on the southern side of Henderson. Other employees at the plant were sent home.
Atlanta-based Atlantis Plastics has 1,300 employees worldwide, and about 150 in Henderson, where workers make parts for refrigerators and plastic siding for homes.
In a news release on the company's Web site, Atlantis Plastics said it is a leading U.S. manufacturer of three kinds of products: polyethylene stretch films for wrapping pallets of materials, custom films for industrial and packaging uses, and molded plastic pieces used in products such as appliances and recreational vehicles.
The company has annual sales of $110 million, according to business directory Hoovers.
___
Associated Press writers Harry Weber in Atlanta and Bruce Schreiner and Rebecca Yonker in Louisville contributed to this report.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press.
Summary
State News
Related Photos
-
Erin McCracken
Discussion
Shootings at Ky. plastics plant stun town; 6 dead
- State News
-
-
Ky. in top 20 states with toxic air pollution
The Natural Resources Defense Council has named Kentucky one of the “Toxic 20” states with the highest levels of toxic air pollution from power plants.
-
Lt. gov. candidate Farmer's wife files for divorce
Court records show the wife of Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture Richie Farmer, a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, has filed for divorce.
-
World Equestrian Games open with fanfare
Muhammad Ali, Wynonna Judd and John Calipari helped the World Equestrian Games get underway amid great fanfare at the Kentucky Horse Park on Saturday night.
-
Environmentalists start their own PAC
Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, a citizen advocacy group that lobbies for environmental causes and more progressive tax policies, is forming its own political action committee or PAC called New Power.
-
College enrollment up state-wide
Kentucky’s public and private college enrollment is at an all-time high, according to data released Monday by the Council on Postsecondary Education
-
Ky. gunman grew hostile, was being evicted
For months, Stanley Neace had shown increasing hostility to his neighbors in rural eastern Kentucky, to the point his landlord started eviction proceedings. On Saturday, Neace snapped over how his wife cooked his eggs, and killed her and four others with a shotgun before shooting himself.
-
McConnell optimistic about GOP
Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell says he’s never seen a more favorable political environment for his party than in this year’s elections and he expects “I’ll be the leader of a larger army” after the Nov. 2 elections.
-
USDA Disputes Paul's Subsidy Numbers
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Rand Paul Wednesday said his position on farm subsidies is “moderate” and claimed the U.S. Department of Agriculture last year paid 234 deceased Florida farmers more than $9 million.
-
Expedited mine permitting suspended in Appalachia
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers suspended an expedited process for obtaining surface mining permits across much of the nation's eastern coalfields Thursday.
-
Louisville senator will challenge David Williams
Republican Sen. Julie Denton, Louisville, said Tuesday she will challenge David Williams, R-Burkesville, for President of the state Senate next January.
- More State News Headlines
-
Ky. in top 20 states with toxic air pollution
Patz Suspect's Sister: I Went to Police in 1980s
Diplomatic Expulsions Follow Fresh Syria Report
15 Dead in Northern Italy's 5.8-magnitude Quake
Angry Birds Spreading Their Wings
Witness Describes Fla. Face-chewing Attack
Man Falls Off Crane, Dies After Police Standoff
Russia Condemns Ally Syria Over Massacre of 108
Dairy Farm Uses Chiropractor to Help Cows
Unexpected Smog in Pristine National Parks
Air Canada Plane Makes Emergency Landing
New Ticks Spread Across Southeast, Diseases Rise
Bring Your Own Tech Programs Charge Up Students
Pope's Butler Vows to Help Vatican Investigation
Mother of Allegedly Abused Girl Denies Claims
Raw Video: 19 Dead in Qatar Shopping Mall Fire
Service Dogs Help Wash. Soldiers Battling PTSD
Raw Video: Heckler Bursts in on Blair Testimony
Japan Farmers Plant, Seek Radiation-free Rice
