California authorities said Wednesday that three children were found dead and a woman severely injured at a Le Grand home.
The woman’s wound was described as “self-inflicted and life-threatening.” The Merced County Sheriff’s Office said that the three slain children were all under the age of 8.
“We’re still in the beginning stages of our investigation,” Police Spokesperson Daryl Allen said. “All of our detectives just got out here on the scene, so we’re currently investigating what happened. We’re trying to collect statements from people who were in the area.”
Authorities were first alerted to the scene at 2:10 p.m. local time when asked to conduct a welfare check at the home where someone could be heard screaming.
“Le Grand is a very small town, it’s a very tight-knit town,” Allen added. “I can tell you that from living here for a long time.”
“This whole town – I’m going to call it a family – everybody in this town knows everybody. So when something like this happens it affects everybody.”
