PALMYRA, Maine (NEWS CENTER) — The Wal-Mart in Palmyra and several surrounding businesses were in lockdown on Friday, as state and local police responded to a report of a suicidal man with a gun inside a truck in the Wal-mart parking lot. The man surrendered peacefully following a standoff with police.
"Before we knew it there were 15-20 squad units out front," explained Ben Beers, an employee at Newport Motorsports, which is located across the street from the Wal-Mart. He watched the standoff unfold,
Meanwhile, Beth Curtis, an employee at Dollar Tree, another store across the street from Wal-Mart says she couldn't wait to get out of work and away from the chaos.
"Our store manager told us to lock the doors," she said.
While some had to stay inside their businesses, others had to leave. Stephanie Martineau, a guest at Lovely's Motel had to evacuate.
"Just to leave because there was something going on in the back," she says police told her.
State Police brought in their Crisis Negotiation team. Around 1 p.m. they convinced the man to surrender.
"I saw him when he was down on the ground and they were cuffing him and moving him out," Beers said.
For police, it was a textbook end to a potentially dangerous situation
"Our major concern was keeping the public safe while we served this man's needs," explained State Police Major Brian Scott, who briefed the media following the end to the standoff.
Scott says the man, who he would only identify as a 28-year-old man from Corinna was taken to a local hospital for evaluation.
Authorities estimated there were about 100 people inside the Wal-Mart store during the standoff. Wal-Mart officials released a statement saying they take the safety of their customers seriously and agreed to close the store until the matter was resolved.