AIKEN COUNTY, SOUTH CAROLINA — As if they weren’t heros already, a pair of armed firefighters are credited with stopping a gunman who surprised them at their station on Tuesday, all while the parking lot was full of children and firefighters.
Firefighters said Chad Barker pulled up to the crowded fire station parking lot full of children and firefighters, got out of his car, and began firing in the air and at his vehicle. They say he also pointed the firearm at individual firefighters for lengthy periods of time.
“I came out of the office, saw the man with the gun, told everybody to leave out the back quickly that there was a man in the parking lot with a gun, and I was not kidding,” said Gary Knoll, a firefighter for New Holland.
Knoll says at that time, himself and another firefighter drew their firearms, which they both have permits to carry. After a few tense minutes, they were able to convince Barker to drop his gun. Once unarmed, firefighters swarmed in to subdue the man until police arrived.
Although Knoll is disappointed that a judge granted Barker a $20,000 bond, he is happy that some of the firefighters are armed.
“It saved a life, if not multiple,” Knoll said.
Bravo, heros. Bravo!
