Visits: 4
A man stabbed three people at a Virginia plasma center while patrons were donating blood, according to authorities.
News reports said one person suffered life-threatening injuries after an unidentified man with a machete attacked people inside the Octapharma Plasma center in Petersburg, Virginia, on Thursday.
“The suspect possibly has a machete. Units use caution,” the dispatcher can be heard saying on the recording released by broadcastify.com.
A first responder could be heard saying that one of the victims lost a finger.
The dispatcher described a chaotic scene as customers and staff members fled for cover. The business sits in a commercial district near a bank and restaurants on the south side of the city about 25 miles (40 kilometers) south of Richmond.
Petersburg Police Lt. Dustin Sloan told reporters Thursday that after officers arrived, the suspect was taken into custody without incident. His name wasn’t immediately released but police indicated he could face charges of aggravated assault.
Sloan said that the attack happened as patrons were inside donating blood.
A spokesman for a Petersburg hospital that received three patients after the attack said Friday morning that one male in critical condition had been transferred elsewhere. A female was in fair condition and another female was in good condition, Southside Regional Medical Center spokesman Brandon Seier said.
Petersburg Police said in a tweet that at least one victim’s injuries were considered life-threatening.
Irene Banks told WWBT that police praised her daughter, a manager there, as a “hero” for stopping the attacker before officers arrested him.
“She took the man down, they said, my daughter did,” Banks told the television station.
Calls to Octapharma Plasma on Friday were not immediately returned. The company’s website says it employs more than 3,000 U.S. workers and operates over 80 plasma donation centers in 26 states.
