Law enforcement responded Tuesday afternoon to a gunshot victim in the Animas Valley north of Durango, according to scanner reports and bystanders.
The shooting was reported at 2:52 p.m. in the 28000 block of U.S. Highway 550, south of Trimble Lane. The highway was closed in both directions, according the Colorado Department of Transportation.
La Plata County Sheriff Sean Smith said he could not immediately comment.
Moments before the apparent shooting, law enforcement was following a black sedan with New Mexico license plates traveling north on Highway 550. A caller reported a woman possibly screaming for help and a man apparently hitting the woman as they drove north at a high rate of speed, according to scanner reports.
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Law enforcement caught up with the vehicle near the 28000 block of Highway 550 to find a man in the road acting highly erratic, according to scanner reports.
First responders then reported someone had been shot.
Vehicles were being rerouted onto County Road 203 from the intersection at north Animas View Drive to Trimble Lane, according to CDOT.
La Plata County resident Chris Wherry said he saw and heard parts of the incident unfolding from inside his home in the Animas Valley.
Wherry said he was working in his home office when he heard law enforcement sirens go by his home. Ten or 15 seconds later, he heard multiple gunshots.
“We have a bunch of trees out on the highway, so I couldn’t get a really clear view of what was going on there, but it looked like ... they had a female person somewhat detained, and then all of a sudden, a ton of other emergency vehicles showed up,” he said.
He said he saw a man lying in the street who appeared to be deceased, with police officers surrounding him. The man was lying behind his own car, Wherry said, and a La Plata County Sheriff’s Office vehicle was parked about 30 feet behind it.
No further details were immediately available Tuesday evening.
This is a developing story. Check back with www.durangoherald.com for updates.
epond@durangoherald.com
