On Friday night, an altercation that broke out in Oklahoma when two highway patrol troopers attempted to help two men whose truck had stalled in rising floodwaters ended with one of the men being fatally shot.
Oklahoma highway patrol captain Paul Timmons told reporters that the patrol received a call from the men, Nehemiah Fischer and his brother, Brandon Fischer, prompting the troopers to attempt a rescue. Timmons said that the troopers told the men to stop trying to push their truck free and move to higher ground, but when the men started arguing, shots were fired by police.
He told Tulsa World, “The water was already fairly deep, and it was starting to rise pretty quickly, and it was running pretty rapidly across the road. [The officers] were concerned these guys would be swept away. For whatever reason, and this is where it gets a little cloudy, [the men] approached the troopers. Shots were fired.”
Newson6.com reported Timmons said, “As they were exiting the water, coming towards the troopers, a confrontation occurred. One of the troopers was actually assaulted, and in defense of himself, he fired.”
Nehemiah Fischer died at the scene; Brandon Fischer was later booked on complaints of assaulting an officer and public intoxication.
On Saturday, an Oklahoma highway patrol spokesman would only say that an “active investigation” was being conducted. Timmons stated he did not know if both troopers fired, how many rounds had been fired or whether the Fischers had weapons, calling the shootings self-defense.
By Saturday morning, 24 deaths from the floods in Oklahoma and Texas had been reported in Texas; 11 people were still missing.
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