2 killed in sniper ambush as Idaho firefighters come under siege from rifle fire

Firefighters were ambushed by sniper fire while responding to a blaze in a northern Idaho mountain group Sunday killing at least two people and unleashing barrages of gunfire over several hours in an attack the governor called a heinous assault The Kootenai County Sheriff s Office mentioned crews responded to a fire at Canfield Mountain just north of Coeur d Alene around p m and gunshots were announced about a half hour later Sheriff Bob Norris announced bureaucrats believe the two people killed were fire personnel He didn t know if anyone else was shot We don t know how countless defendants are up there and we don t know how a large number of casualties there are Norris communicated reporters at a p m news conference We are actively taking sniper fire as we speak People are still coming off the mountain the sheriff announced so it would be safe to assume that others were still up there Gov Brad Little announced multiple firefighters were attacked This is a heinous direct assault on our brave firefighters Little mentioned on the social platform X I ask all Idahoans to pray for them and their families as we wait to learn more Norris commented it appeared the sniper was hiding in the rugged terrain and using a high-powered rifle He revealed he instructed deputies to fire back I m hoping that somebody has a clear shot and is able to neutralize because they re not at this point in time showing any evidence of wanting to surrender the sheriff commented An alert by the Kootenai County Urgency Management Office questioned people to avoid the area around Canfield Mountain Trailhead and Nettleton Gulch Road about miles km north of downtown Coeur d Alene The fire was still developing Norris explained It s going to keep burning he disclosed Can t put any tools on it right now Coeur d Alene is a city of residents near the territory line with Washington Canfield Mountain is a popular hiking and biking area on the outskirts of the northern Idaho city covered with trees and heavy brush and crisscrossed with trails Source