(CNN) — Five people were killed in a shooting Friday night at a mall in Burlington, Washington about an hour north of Seattle.
Police are searching for at least one shooter and are sweeping stores in the mall, Sgt. Mark Francis said.
“Please avoid Cascade Mall area in Burlington,” Francis said in a tweet. ” Follow all road closures.”
Brandi Montreuil said she was at the movies when they were told to leave.
“I didn’t know anything,” she said. “The theater attendant came in and apologized for stopping the movie and said they (theater staff) were asked to have everyone leave immediately.”
She said at first she thought it was a drill.
“But you immediately think about what happened in Aurora, Colorado, so you start moving faster,” she said, referring to the shooting in 2012 that left 12 dead.
When they got outside, they saw numerous police vehicles, but with no officers in sight, Montreuil said.
“We didn’t know if it was a fire so we were looking for smoke of some kind. Then a few officers started canvassing through the crowds asking if anybody saw anything.”
She said an officer “with a large gun started yelling for people to leave, and fast.”
