Gunman Shoots Two At Hospital

An employee at the Hospital for Special Care in New Britain shot two supervisors in the basement offices around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

The two victims are reported to be in serious but stable condition at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford.

Many employees at the hospital live in surrounding towns and could have been at work at the time of the shooting.

"From what I heard an employee shot at least one supervisor, said a HFSC employee who lives in Berlin. "It happened in the basement offices. The hospital got locked down.

"There are a good amount of people who work in the hospital from the surrounding towns. There are 2,000 employees."

The employee said she had reason to pause even as she walked out of work at 4 p.m. just two hours before the shooting.

"Hospitals are vulnerable places unfortunately," she said. "Today when I walked out of work there was a security guard at the front desk. If patients have visitors they don't have to swipe in or check in, they just come in and visit. To have it be an employee is even more alarming because you would never think a fellow employee would be capable of that."

The employee said she has not heard anything about going to work on Thursday but thought it would be business as usual because the patients will be there and need care.

According to CTNOW.com: The suspect, Victor Valcarcel Sr., 65, of 37 Helen Drive, was arrested without incident, New Britain Police Chief William Gagliardi said. Valcarcel was being held Wednesday night at the New Britain Police Department, and was charged with two counts of first-degree assault and criminal intent to commit murder, Gagliardi said.

Sources said he was a maintenance worker at the hospital.

Police said a firearm had been recovered.

The victims, identified as Lynn Trask and Robert Barucci, both supervisors, were in serious but stable condition at St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford, officials said. Officials said that the shooting occurred during an attempt to discipline Valcarcel and that he was still employed at the time.