New Canton, Illinois, went on lockdown Thursday morning after a shooting and multiple deaths prompted authorities to warn residents to stay inside.
Around 7:30 a.m., the Hull Kinderhook Fire Protection District urged people to avoid traveling through New Canton, about 80 miles west of Springfield, “until it is deemed safe.” Officials instructed residents to stay in their homes and lock doors as police responded to an “active situation” spanning multiple crime scenes.
The Pike County Sheriff’s Department arrived just after 9 a.m., telling residents on social media that officers were “actively working to bring this matter to a safe resolution” and asking for cooperation. The Western School District 12 went on a soft lockdown at 10:30 a.m., lifted shortly before 12:30 p.m., while Pikeland School District 10 also resumed normal activity after being told the threat had passed.
Investigators later said a woman called 911 reporting she had been shot by her husband. Chief Deputy Zack Orr said the gunman had made threatening remarks about harming her parents, who also live in New Canton. Deputies performed a welfare check and found both parents deceased at their home. The woman had been shot at a separate location.
The suspected gunman, 67-year-old Gerald E. Waligorski, was later found dead in his home. Authorities have not yet determined a motive for the shootings. “I’ve worked for this county for 26 years and can count on two hands the number of violent crimes we’ve had,” Orr said. “It’s a shocking incident, and I think it shocks everybody.”
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