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Philadelphia home burns after 2 officers hurt by gunfire

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Two police officers were wounded Wednesday by gunfire at a suburban Philadelphia home that later became engulfed in flames, authorities said.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
                                Firefighters work at the scene where two police officers were injured while responding to reported standoff in East Lansdowne, Pa.
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Firefighters work at the scene where two police officers were injured while responding to reported standoff in East Lansdowne, Pa.

ASSOCIATED PRESS
                                Firefighters work at the scene where two police officers were injured while responding to reported standoff in East Lansdowne, Pa.

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Philadelphia home burns after 2 officers hit with gunfire

EAST LANSDOWNE, Pa. >> Two police officers were wounded today by gunfire at a suburban Philadelphia home that later was set on fire and consumed by the blaze, authorities said.

Officers from East Lansdowne, Lansdowne and Upper Darby responded to the house in East Lansdowne in the afternoon after a 911 call reporting that an 11-year-old girl had been shot, Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer said.

They immediately came under fire. One officer was shot in the arm and the other in the leg, officials said. They were both described by Stollsteimer as male, veteran officers who work for the East Lansdowne department.

Officers from Upper Darby saved their lives by dragging them out of danger, he added, and “we expect them to be perfectly fine.”

The house was then set on fire, he said. Intense flames were initially seen rising from the roof and top floor of the three-story home before spreading to the lower levels, largely gutting the structure.

By evening the blaze appeared to have been all but extinguished, with smoke still rising from the wreckage as firefighters worked the scene. The side of a neighboring home was also charred.

The entire block was evacuated, according to the district attorney.

There was no immediate word on the condition of anyone inside the home, including the child who was reported wounded.

“We don’t know who was in the house, we don’t know who the shooter was, we don’t know how many people are in there, we don’t know their status, we don’t know if they’re alive,” Stollsteimer said.

Upper Darby Superintendent Timothy Bernhardt described a volatile and dangerous scene when officers from his department officers responded to the home and were able to rescue the two wounded agents.

“All officers that were on scene initially were taking on fire, and then when they removed themselves from it, there was no more gunfire at that point.”

East Lansdowne is about 5 miles (8 kilometers) west of downtown Philadelphia.

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