The Associated Press
MOUNT RAINIER NATIONAL PARK — A ranger was shot today at Mount Rainier National Park, prompting officials to close the park as they searched for a man carrying a long rifle.
Officials with the national park announced this afternoon that the ranger, identified as Margaret Anderson, died.
The shooting happened just before 11 a.m. near the Longmire Ranger Station, The (Tacoma) News Tribune reported.
Just after noon, Pierce County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Ed Troyer said the ranger hadn’t been taken out of the park and that shots were still being fired within park boundaries.
The Longmire station is in the southwest corner of the 368-square-mile park. It served as headquarters when the national park was established in 1899. Park headquarters have moved but the site still contains a museum, a hotel, restaurant and gift shop, which are open year-round.
The State Patrol and the sheriff’s office were working together on the investigation, Troyer said.
Other details about the shooting weren’t immediately available.
