JASPER, Ga. (AP) — Police in a small town at the southern end of the Blue Ridge mountains in Georgia said they were responding to a shooting Tuesday at a Department of Veterans Affairs clinic, and at least one person was airlifted to the hospital.
Jasper police were sent to the VA clinic around 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, the city said in a statement on its Facebook page. The officers located the suspected shooter and confronted the suspect, who was shot, the statement said.
Local calls to the Pickens County VA clinic were routed to various recordings during the incident, with no one answering the phone. The outpatient clinic in Jasper provides vital services, including primary care and specialty health services such as laboratory tests, telehealth, and mental health care, according to its website.
The town of Jasper, which has a population of roughly 5,000 people, is situated about 60 miles north of downtown Atlanta. Its highway signage promotes itself as Georgia's 'First Mountain City' with picturesque views of the Appalachian Mountains.
Photos from the local newspaper, the Pickens Progress, showed numerous law enforcement officers on the scene, dressed in tactical vests near a strip mall where the clinic is located.
This clinic, which opened in the summer of 2020, was designed to enhance access to healthcare for veterans, ensuring they receive the quality service they have earned closer to home.
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Assistant Martin reported from Kennesaw, Georgia.
