Armed woman wounded by officer in Dallas Love Field Airport shooting, police say

An armed woman who was dropped off at Dallas Love Field Airport was shot Monday morning by a police officer after she opened fire inside the airport, the Dallas police chief said.

Portia Odufuwa, 37, was taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, police said.

The woman arrived at the airport about 11 a.m., walked by a Southwest Airlines ticket counter and entered a bathroom, where she changed clothes, Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia said at a press conference.

“She exited the bathroom wearing a hoodie,” Garcia said. “She produced a handgun and started firing. An officer who had seen her fired at her.”

The police chief said Odufuwa had aimed at the ceiling, and no one was injured by the shots. It is unknown what her motive was or whether she was targeting anyone, Garcia said.

A Dallas police officer shot the woman in her lower body, he said.

People were evacuated from at least part of the airport, and police said the terminal is secure.

Rockwall Police Chief Max Geron wrote on Twitter that he was at the airport with his family and was evacuated.

“Just got evacuated out of Love Field after an apparent shooting,” Geron wrote. “Family is safe. TSA did a great job.”

Geron told KXAS-TV in a phone interview that he and his family heard several shots near a ticket counter as they were going through a TSA checkpoint. He told the NBC station that he grabbed his kids and TSA agents responded quickly by moving travelers into secure areas.

Geron told KXAS that the TSA got word that “the shooter was down.”

Southwest Airlines provided water to evacuated passengers, who were able to take shelter in a shaded area outside, Geron wrote on Twitter.

Videos shared on social media showed passengers huddling outside the building.

FAA officials issued a ground stop at the airport for security reasons. The stop issue was ordered at 11:11 a.m. and it was expected to last until 2:30 p.m. Monday, according to the FAA.

Departures were grounded, FAA officials said on their website, and flights inbound to Dallas Love were being held at their departure location.

Across the nation, the shooting caused about 900 flight delays and 160 cancellations.

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