Kentucky police were searching rugged terrain near a national forest for a suspect after at least seven people were wounded by gunfire while driving down the rural stretch of an interstate highway, officials said on Saturday evening.
The incident began just before 6 p.m. (1000 GMT) about nine miles outside of the town of London, when officers responded to reports of gunshots directed at vehicles traveling on Interstate 75 in Laurel County. The shots came from a wooded area or an overpass, according to local media reports.
Mayor Randall Weddle of London, a small city of about 8,000 near the Daniel Boone National Forest, about 90 miles (145 km) south of Lexington, said in a post on Facebook that seven people were injured, including some who were shot. He said there were no known fatalities. Police offered no further details about the number or nature of any casualties.
Weddle asked everyone in the area to "keep your doors locked while this guy is on the loose."
A stretch of highway near the Kentucky shootings was closed but later reopened even though the suspect was still at large.
About three hours after the shooting, the Laurel County Sheriff's Office named a "person of interest" who it said was "armed and dangerous" and cautioned the public not to approach the 32-year-old man.
"The below individual, Joseph A Couch, is a Person of Interest in the shooting that occurred at the Exit 49/KY-909 area. If you have any information regarding the whereabouts or location of this individual, please contact the London-Laurel County 911 Center by calling 911 or 606-878-7000. ***DO NOT ATTEMPT TO APPROACH***. Joseph A Couch is a 32-year-old white male approximately 5'10 weighing approximately 154lbs," police posted on Facebook.
Agents, from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have been called in to assist the Kentucky State Police and local law enforcement, the agency posted on X, calling it a "critical incident."
London is a small city of about 8,000 residents near the Daniel Boone National Forest, about 90 miles south of Lexington.
The shooting comes days after two students and two teachers were killed, and nine others wounded, at a high school in Winder, Georgia high school. A 14-year-old student and his father, suspected of giving his son access to the gun used in the shooting, were charged in the shootings, which took place soon after the school year opened.