2 Burnsville police officers and paramedic killed identified as Paul Elmstrand, Matthew Ruge and Adam Finseth

In the early hours of Sunday morning, two law enforcement officers and an additional first responder lost their lives in Burnsville.

The City of Burnsville stated that two police officers from Burnsville and a firefighter/paramedic were responding to a domestic abuse call when they were tragically shot and killed.

First responders were summoned to the 12600 block of 33rd Avenue South shortly before 2 a.m. following a report of a domestic situation involving a man barricaded in a house with family members, as per a statement from the City of Burnsville.

Following the officers’ arrival, the situation “resulted in gunfire” involving the responders, as stated in the release.

Burnsville Police Officers Paul Elmstrand and Matthew Ruge, alongside firefighter/paramedic Adam Finseth, were fatally shot by the assailant, according to the release.

A fourth police officer, Sgt. Adam Medlicott, sustained injuries and was transported to a hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, as confirmed by the city.

The suspect was reportedly deceased by 8 a.m., and later in the morning, other family members exited the residence unharmed. The police department has not disclosed the circumstances of the gunman’s death.

The department advises the public to refrain from approaching the area until additional instructions are provided.

Elmstrand began his tenure with the Burnsville Police Department as a community services officer in 2017 and was later promoted to officer in 2019.

The 27-year-old was actively involved in various roles within the department, including the mobile command staff, peer team, Honor Guard, and field training unit.

Ruge, also 27, joined the department in 2020 and was a member of its crisis negotiations team, serving as a physical evidence officer, as stated by the city. Finseth, aged 40, had been serving as a firefighter/paramedic for the city since 2019.