Iowa City shooting: Burlington and Governor on alert; first details on suspect out

The initial alert read “Gunshots in the area of Burlington and Governor suspect heading EB avoid the area and shelter in place. police on scene.” The first alert went out at 1:51 pm.

It added that the gunfire had originated off campus. “Please remain vigilant, shelter in place, and report any suspicious activity by calling 911,” it further said. The alert also stated the suspect from Burlington and Governor fled westbound on foot. “Shelter in place and avoid the area,” it said.

What to know about the shooting?

The University of Iowa had sent out a Hawk Alert on Friday alerting those on campus of possible gunshots several blocks east of campus. Notably, many students live there.

The pursuit reportedly forced media availability for Big Noon Kickoff personalities to vacate the site on the Pentacrest and move to Schaeffer Hall, which is nearby, as per local media reports. “The Big Noon Kickoff site in the Pentacrest has been evacuated because of this,” a reporter stated.

A local radio channel reported that Iowa City Police Department is actively investigating a shots fired incident in the 900 block of E. Burlington St. People were asked to avoid the area.

The shooting today comes ahead of the Iowa Hawkeyes versus Oregon Ducks game. Iowa could have a chance to strengthen its case for College Football playoffs when hosting Oregon at the Kinnick Stadium.

Iowa has a shot at the College Football Playoff rankings after having mustered a strong defense and pulled off a 4-1 record in Big Ten play. Meanwhile, Oregon is at one loss and has little room for error in today’s game.