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NEWS
7A
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2007
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CRIME
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Shoppers file out of the Von Maur store with their hands up after a shooting at Westbrooks Mall in Omaha, Neb., on Wednesday. A man opened fire with a rifle at the department store, killing eight people, while customers and employees hid in closes and dressing rooms on the store's second and third floors.
Gunman kills eight in mall
BY OSKAR GARCIA ASSOCIATED PRESS
OMAHA, Neb. — A man opened fire with a rifle at a busy department store Wednesday, killing eight people before taking his own life in an attack that made holiday shoppers run screaming through a mall and barricade themselves in dressing rooms. Five more people were wounded, two critically.
The gumman left a suicide note that was found at his home by his mother, said a law enforcement official who spoke under anonymity because he was not authorized to speak. TV station KETV reported that the note said he wanted to "go out in style."
The official identified the gunman as Robert A. Hawkins, age 20.
Witnesses said the gunman fired down on shoppers from a third-floor balcony of the Von Maur store. One witness told a TV station that he shot up a teddy bear as he sprayed fire on shoppers.
He was found dead on the third floor with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and his victims were discovered on the second and third floors, police said.
"My knees rocked. I didn't know what to do, so I just ran with everybody else," said Kevin Kleine, 29, who was shopping with her 4-year-old daughter at the Westroads Mall, in a prosperous neighborhood on the city's west side. She said she hid in a dressing room with four other shoppers and an employee.
Sgt. Teresa Negron said the gunman killed eight people, then apparently killed himself. Authorities gave no motive for the attack and said they did not know whether he said anything during the rampage.
Police received a 911 call from someone inside the mall, and shots could be heard in the background, Negron said. By the time officers arrived six minutes later, the shooting was over, she said.
The Omaha World-Herald reported that the gunman had a military-style haircut and a black backpack, and wore a camouflage vest.
"Everybody was scared, and we didn't know what was going on," said Belene Esaw-Kagbara, 31, a Von Maur employee. "We didn't know what to do. I was praying that God protect us."
Mickey Vickory, who worked at Von Maur's third-floor service department, said she heard shots at about 1:50 p.m.
She and her co-workers and
customers went into a back closet behind the wrapping room to hide, then emerged about a half-hour later when police shouted to come out with their hands up. As police took them to another part of the mall for safety, they saw the victims.
Keith Fidler, another Von Maur employee, said he heard a burst of five to six shots followed by 15 to 20 more rounds. Fidler said he huddled in the corner of the men's clothing department with about a dozen other employees until police yelled to get out of the store.
"We saw the bodies and we saw the blood," she said.
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》 HEALTH
Travelers can get flu vaccinations while waiting at major U.S. airports
BY DANIEL YEE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ATLANTA — After taking off their shoes, emptying their pockets and passing through the security checkpoint, travelers at some major U.S. airports can now roll up a sleeve and get a flu shot.
"The convenience is great," Danny Manzon, a busy, 53-year-old restaurant consultant, said after getting vaccinated Tuesday at a kiosk in front of an AirTran gate at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. He said he had wanted to get a flu shot for three months but never had the time.
womenofku.com
For years, some airports have been offering flu shots to airline passengers before they cleared security. But many travelers were too afraid of missing their flights to stop.
So this year, airports in such cities as Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Newark, N.J., and San Francisco are setting up "airside" health stations close to the gates, past the security checkpoints.
The shots typically take just a few minutes and cost $15 to $35. So far, the airports in the five major cities have given out about 15,000 shots this season.
"It's helpful being on the airside because people don't know how long it's going to take get-
shots won't be protected right away. It takes about two weeks for a shot to offer full protection.
Airport health officials said
"They don't have time to go to the physician."
Getting vaccinated now offers plenty of time for the shot to take full effect before the peak flu season begins, typically after December.
DOMINIC MACK
Chief medical officer
Atlanta airport health station
Zampella, director of nursing and general operations manager of a service that is offering flu shots at the Newark airport.
The vaccinations are seen as particularly convenient for those who travel frequently on business.
"They don't have time to go to the physician," said Dominic Mack, chief medical officer of the service offering shots in Atlanta.
A outbreaks had eventually they may offer other vaccinations, too, as well as cholesterol tests and screening for high blood pressure.
"We're finding that's where people are," said Michelle Smith, spokewoman for
Airline passengers receiving the
Denver Health, which operates a clinic at the Denver airport.
Last year, Chicago's O'Hare Airport dispensed on 5,000 flu shots to passengers and employees from klosks next to gates.
"It itt over great," and the idea was expanded this year to Chicago's Midway, said John Zautke, medical director for the University of Illinois Medical Center at O'Hare.
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