Panicked Arkansas grocery store shoppers hid in freezer and ran for cover amid shooting that killed 4 and wounded 9

CNN — Families were shopping at a local grocery store in a small Arkansas town on Friday when the sound of gunfire reverberated through the store, sending them running for cover or huddling in a freezer.

Katrina Doherty – who had been shopping for dinner with her 18-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son – said she first thought she heard the sound of something falling but then saw glass shatter and someone drop to the ground. That’s when she knew shots were being fired.

Outside, David Rodriguez was pulling into a gas station when he heard “pops” that he initially thought were fireworks. He then noticed the grocery store’s front windows were broken – as if they had been “shot open” by gunfire, Rodriguez said.

Panicked shoppers then started running away as gunshots were fired rapidly, Rodriguez said. A man had opened fire at the Mad Butcher in Fordyce, killing four people and wounding nine others. Those killed ranged in age from 23 to 81 years old and include one person who police later announced died on Saturday evening.