By Holly Thompson and Amber Wilkinson
A man in his 50s turned a homemade gun on himself at a Perth emergency department on Sunday evening after his partner was pronounced dead, a witness has claimed.
The man was admitted into the intensive care unit at Joondalup Health Campus with a serious but non-life-threatening head injury after the incident unfolded just before 7pm.
The man shot himself in the hospital’s emergency department. Credit: Fairfax Media
He was in a stable condition on Monday, despite remaining under intensive care.
A witness told 9News Perth that the man had rushed his partner to hospital after finding her unresponsive at home.
After she was declared dead by hospital staff, the witness said the man then pulled a homemade gun out of the waistband of his jeans, yelling “I have a gun”, before turning the weapon on himself.
Admissions to the hospital were temporarily diverted in response to the incident.
A WA Police spokeswoman confirmed no other visitors, staff or patients were threatened with the firearm. Police have seized the homemade gun and will investigate the incident further.
A spokeswoman for Joondalup Health Campus said the incident was now the subject of a police investigation, and reassured the public that “their safety in our hospital is a high priority.”
“The wellbeing of our ED staff is paramount, and we are providing support,” she said.
Premier Roger Cook addressed the incident at a press conference on Monday morning, and described it as “very distressing.”
“We are undertaking immediate investigations to provide as much information as we can, as soon as we can,” he said.
“This is an incident which is obviously incredibly distressing for the staff who were on shift last night.
“I want to thank them for their professionalism, and I want to thank them for doing everything they can to keep people safe.”
If you or someone you know is in need of support contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.