A television reporter and a cameraman were shot to death on air during a live broadcast today wednesday morning in Virginia by a gunman.Reporter Alison Parker was interviewing an economic development official around 6:45am about tourism on Bridgewater Plaza in Franklin county,looking at the upcoming 50th anniversary festivities for Smith Mountain Lake.The station said in a tweet shortly before the shooting that Parker was looking into the planning process for a celebration.According to Jefferey A.Marks,General Manager of WDBJ-TV,said ''Alison Parker was working with the cameraman Adam Ward when she died.She was smiling when suddenly at least eight shots were heard.Parker screams,runs and can be heard saying oh my God.As the camera drops to the ground,it captures what appears to be a fleeting image of the shooter.The person is wearing black pants and a blue top and he or she appears to be holding a hand gun.The station then switches back a shot of an anchor back at the station,who appears shocked and says ok,not sure what happened there.We will of course let you know as soon as we find out what those sounds were from''.Governor Terry MC Auliffe,when interviewed said that the law enforcement personnel have a photo of the suspect and that he was known to the victims.''The shooter was believed to be a disgrunted employee of the TV station and was being chased by the police on Interstate 64.His arrest sould be imminent,they're right behind him''.Alison Parker turned 24 and attended James Madison university,where she was the editor of the school's newspaper ''The Breeze''.She also had been an intern at the WDBJ-TV.Her boyfriend Chris Hurst,who is also a WDBJ anchor said they hadn't shared their relationship publicly but they were very much in love.He said they had just moved in together and wanted to get married.She had just finished a special package on child abuse for the TV Station.According to the spokesman for the WDBJ-TV station said the cameraman,27 year old Adam Ward is a graduate of Virginia Tech.He was engaged to be a producer at the TV station.''Adam was our go to guy.He pretty much was available to do anything that we asked.He did like shots during our morning show for several years''.The TV station is based in Roanoke Virginia and serves the southwest and central part of the state.The shopping mall where the incident happened is just off Smith Mountain Lake in Moneta,about 25 miles southeast of Roanoke.More photos below.
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