Wilmington Hospital employees describe heightened security, lingering questions after fatal shooting
WILMINGTON, Del. (WPVI) -- Employees and patients arriving at Wilmington Hospital on Wednesday encountered tightened security one day after a shooting inside the facility left one worker dead and another seriously injured.
Nae Stanford, a hospital technician, said the atmosphere remained tense.
"I would say it's very sad. Everybody's asking a lot of questions," she said.
Christina Agostino, another hospital employee, recalled the confusion during the shooting.
"We didn't really know what was going on. We just saw people running around, and then they said 'shelter in place, you can't leave your unit,'" she said, adding she hopes for improved communication from the hospital going forward.
Authorities say 23-year-old hospital employee John Wallace Bey will be extradited to Delaware to face murder and attempted murder charges.
A LinkedIn page under the same name states that Wallace Bey has worked as a community tech intern for ChristianaCare since February.
Stanford said the suspect had been in her department earlier in the day performing IT duties.
"The suspected shooter - he was in my department before everything happened," she said. "Normal, just normal. Came in, did what he had to do and left."
RELATED: Witnesses describe terrifying moments inside Wilmington Hospital following deadly double shooting
Both Stanford and Agostino said they typically use ID badges to access employee entrances, which were closed on Wednesday.
"We had to go through metal detectors this morning, which usually we don't," Stanford said.
Patients also noticed the increased security presence.
"Usually, it's pretty light at the metal detectors. There's only one, maybe two people. Today, there's like six to seven," said patient Paul Tanner.
State Rep. Stephanie Bolden, who represents the area, said she believes the hospital will address any security concerns but noted the challenge of balancing safety with accessibility.
"You don't want to make it look like it's a prison that you're going in, in terms of security being everywhere," she said. "So I don't know, but I'm sure that something will come out of this, and if we can do anything legislatively, then that's what we'll look into."
ChristianaCare deferred questions about the circumstances surrounding the shooting to Wilmington police, who said the investigation remains ongoing.
