Shocking incident in a huge church of a TV preacher in the USA – A woman with a child opened fire

Two people, including a five-year-old boy, were injured from the bullets of a woman who opened fire, before falling dead, inside the giant church of the famous pastor and televangelist (television preacher) Joel Osteen in Texaswhich is among the largest places of worship of USAthe police announced yesterday Sunday.

Armed with a rifle and accompanied by a child, the perpetrator of the attack broke into the church it, a former indoor stadium that has been converted, has a capacity of 16,800 seats, Houston Police Chief Troy Finer explained during a press conference.

When the woman started throwing, off-duty police officers at the scene returned fire almost immediately and she dropped dead, he explained.

A five-year-old child is hospitalized “in critical condition”, while a man in his fifties was hit by a bullet in the leg, added the police chief.

The attack happened between two services, shortly before a service in Spanish began, said Pastor Austin, 60, whose sermons are broadcast live on television and watched by millions of worshipers each week.

He declared himself “disgusted” by the episode. “I don't understand what would have happened if it happened during the 11:00 service (…) We thank God for that,” he said during a press conference, adding that he was praying for the victims and the woman who carried out the attack.

Pastor Austin's church was founded in 1959. It does not belong to any particular denomination; it declares itself apolitical.

With more guns than residents, the US has the highest rate of gun deaths of any developed country, according to AFP and the Athens News Agency.

Gun attacks are an ever-recurring scourge that one administration after another seems powerless to deal with, as a large portion of Americans can't imagine themselves without a gun, or guns.