An assailant fatally shot a person inside the lobby of a state psychiatric hospital in Concord, N.H., on Friday afternoon and then was killed shortly afterward by a state trooper patrolling the campus, state officials said.
Col. Mark B. Hall, the director of the New Hampshire Department of Safety, said at a news conference on Friday night that the authorities were still investigating a motive for the shooting, which occurred about 3:30 p.m.
He said that it remained unclear if there were connections between the victim and the assailant. Their identities were not released on Friday night.
No patients were injured in the episode, Colonel Hall said at an earlier briefing.
The trooper who shot the assailant had been assigned to patrol the hospital and was close to the shooter at the time of the shooting, Colonel Hall said. The trooper “immediately engaged, shot and killed” the shooter, he added.
The victim was taken to Concord Hospital and died there.
Lori Weaver, the commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, said at the news conference that “this is a difficult and unimaginable day for our employees and for our community.”
The authorities did not offer more details about the shooting.
Colonel Hall said that officials were investigating a “suspicious vehicle” that had been found, but he did not elaborate.
New Hampshire Hospital says on its website that it treats people with mental illnesses. State police officers typically keep watch over the hospital, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.
The hospital is part of a state complex that comprises about 120 acres, houses several state agencies and has about 3,000 to 4,000 people on site on a typical business day, including staff members and visitors.
