Sean Gerace was working in the backroom of a Trader Joe's in Silver Lake Saturday afternoon when he heard screaming and gunfire.

He ran upstairs, grabbed a couple of his co-workers, made his way into a storage are.

"I grabbed an emergency ladder, barricaded the hallway, grabbed a weapon, put the ladder out the window, and just tried to get the attention of a SWAT officer," he said.

Once he got his attention, he signaled that he wanted to go down the ladder and the officer gave him the thumbs up. He and several co-workers got down the ladder to safety.

They were among the dozens of terrified workers and customers caught up in the rampage by a man accused of shooting his grandmother and girlfriend in South Los Angeles before leading police on a car chase and getting into a gunbattle with police that ended in a hostage crisis at the Trader Joe's.

The unidentified man was taken into custody after the tense, two-hour-plus standoff in which a woman was shot to death.

It was unknown how many people were inside the store when the suspect ran in. A throng of police and fire crews surrounded the store by 4 p.m.

Aerial footage showed what appeared to be a store employee dragging a woman from the grocery store.

Police also were seen carrying children away from the store.

In a news conference, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti expressed sympathy for the community. He said he and his wife were regular shoppers at the Silver Lake store for years.

"Our hearts go out to everybody who has been traumatized," he said.

City News Service contributed to this report.

The FBI on Saturday made public redacted documents related to the electronic surveillance of former Trump campaign aide Carter Page NBC News reports. Page was at the center of a controversy over how the FBI sought the secretive warrant.

The documents released Saturday appear to discount claims made by some Republicans that the FBI failed to properly disclose sources of information used to seek the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act warrant, and it shows that authorities used other sources of information besides the Steele "dossier" in the application, which was granted by a judge.

The warrant, which is heavily redacted in several areas, was released on Saturday following Freedom of Information Act litigation launched by The New York Times and other media organizations and it was released with the approval of a judge.

Hamden police are investigating after a SUV hit a tree early Sunday morning causing multiple fatalities.

According to police, an SUV struck a tree near the intersection of Whitney Ave. and Route 40 around 2:30 a.m. Sunday.

All three people inside the vehicle at the time of the crash have been pronounced dead.

Police have not identified any of the victims.

Investigators on scene say that Whitney Ave. will be closed til at least 10 a.m. while they investigate.

A heavy police presence closed off part of a neighborhood in Manchester for hours on Saturday night.

It left people on edge wondering what was going on.

Our crew saw detectives out on Walker Street for hours apparently scouring for evidence. Earlier they saw two men taken out in handcuffs.

Police have yet to reveal what happened to them or even what prompted officers to swarm the area in the first place.

Police with their guns drawn were seen staking out the street after neighbors reported hearing what sounded like gunshots.

“We were just sitting on the couch watching tv and my cat jumped up,” said Jennifer Ruel, of Manchester.

Neighbors were stunned to see the heavy police presence at the intersection with East Center Street, not far from Manchester High School.

Nearby roads were closed and people were urged to stay away as police donned tactical gear.

“They were definitely dressed in armor and they had the shields and everything. It’s pretty serious,” said Danny Foster, of Manchester.

“The SWAT guy came out and said, 'you know this is Manchester PD. Please come out. Pretty much make yourself known come outside,” said Ruel.

After several tense hours, two men were taken out in handcuffs. That was followed by an apparently painstaking hunt for any clues.

People are still waiting for answers as to what happened there.

“Usually this is a quiet area, so nothing ever happens over here,” Ruel said.

Officers have not released more details about what happened or what exactly the two people were arrested for.

A pedestrian has died after being hit by a car in Hamden on Friday night.

Officers responded to Dixwell Avenue near Old Dixwell Avenue around 6:48 p.m. after getting a report of a pedestrian struck.

Investigators learned that 50-year-old Kristin Wilczynski, of North Haven, was attempting to cross the street when she was hit by a vehicle being driven by 28-year-old Courtney Bothwell, of North Haven. According to police, Bothwell was traveling southbound on Dixwell Avenue and was merging onto Old Dixwell Avenue when the collision happened.

First responders rendered medical aid to Wilczynski. She was transported to Yale-New Haven Hospital where she later died.

Anyone with information on the accident is asked to contact Officer Kevin Hall at (203) 230-4036.

A heavy police presence closed off part of a neighborhood in Manchester for hours on Saturday night.

It left people on edge wondering what was going on.

Our crew saw detectives out on Walker Street for hours apparently scouring for evidence. Earlier they saw two men taken out in handcuffs.

Police have yet to reveal what happened to them or even what prompted officers to swarm the area in the first place.

Police with their guns drawn were seen staking out the street after neighbors reported hearing what sounded like gunshots.

“We were just sitting on the couch watching tv and my cat jumped up,” said Jennifer Ruel, of Manchester.

Neighbors were stunned to see the heavy police presence at the intersection with East Center Street, not far from Manchester High School.

Nearby roads were closed and people were urged to stay away as police donned tactical gear.

“They were definitely dressed in armor and they had the shields and everything. It’s pretty serious,” said Danny Foster, of Manchester.

“The SWAT guy came out and said, 'you know this is Manchester PD. Please come out. Pretty much make yourself known come outside,” said Ruel.

After several tense hours, two men were taken out in handcuffs. That was followed by an apparently painstaking hunt for any clues.

People are still waiting for answers as to what happened there.

“Usually this is a quiet area, so nothing ever happens over here,” Ruel said.

Officers have not released more details about what happened or why the two people were taken out in handcuffs.

More than a dozen Ritz cracker sandwiches and Ritz Bits products have been recalled due to a possible salmonella contamination, Mondelez Global LLC said.

The New Jersey-based company has recalled sixteen products — including Ritz Cheese Cracker Sandwiches and Ritz Bits Cheese — in the U.S., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands because the whey powder they’re made with could contain salmonella, it said.

Mondelez hasn’t received any reports of people falling ill after eating these products yet, but consumers who have purchased them should throw them out, the company noted.

A full list of the products included in the recall can be found on Mondelez’ website.

“Salmonella is a microorganism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems,” Mondelez said in a release.

Symptoms can include fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and stomach pain, the company said.

One person died and multiple people were injured in a shooting Toronto Sunday night, police say. Nine people have been transported to hospitals. 

Six people were transported to one trauma center, two to local hospitals, and one to a pediatric trauma center, officials said. 

An unknown number of people are being treated at the scene of the shooting, paramedics said. 

A home in Guilford is damaged after a fire on Sunday night.

Firefighters were called to 3080 Boston Post Road at the intersection of Route 1 and Route 22 shortly before 10:45 p.m. They arrived to find heavy fire in a one-story home.

Firefighters from Guilford, Branford and North Branford worked to contain the flames during heavy rain and in muggy conditions.

“The mugginess kept the smoke down, so kept it low so a lot of low level smoke, but other than that, it was hot, humid. Keeping everybody hydrated,” Guilford Fire Department Assistant Chief Michael Shove said.

No injuries were reported.

Investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire. It is unclear if a family lived in the home.

An 8-year-old girl who was reported missing from Hamden on Monday has been found safe.

Leah Brewer had been missing since around midnight, police said. The Silver Alert was cancelled shortly before 5:00 a.m.

Officers believed she was with her mother, Jaimee Hutton, but the girl's family could not get ahold of her. 

Hutton did not have her cell phone on her and she and Leah got home later than their family expected, police said.

A downed tree and wires have closed Leonard Road in Stafford on Monday morning.

The tree and wires came down on Leonard Road near Upper Road around 5:00 a.m. 

The road is expected to be closed for an extended amount of time, according to dispatchers.

Motorists are encouraged to use alternate routes.

A motorcyclist has serious injuries after a crash in Barkhamsted on Sunday night.

According to police, 34-year-old Gary Schwartz, of Ansonia, was driving southbound on Route 219 in Barkhamsted, north of Ratlum Road in New Hartford around 5:00 p.m.

Schwartz drifted off the southbound shoulder before losing control on the grass. His motorcycle then re-entered the southbound section of the roadway before landing on its side.

First responders found Schwartz laying on the southbound side of Route 219 next to his motorcycle.

Schwartz had a head injury and was transported to Hartford Hospital by LifeStar, police said.

The accident remains under investigation. Anyone with information about the accident is asked to contact police at (860) 626-1820.

President Donald Trump's approval rating ticked up to 45 percent among registered voters, but majorities of them disapprove of his handling of Russia and immigration at the border, according to the new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.

The president's approval rating remains stable — it was at 44 percent in June — something that stands out given the controversies since then, said Republican pollster Bill McInturff, who conducted the survey with two Democratic pollsters.

"The Republican numbers don't budge," McInturff said.

Among Republicans, Trump's approval rating is at 88 percent, the highest of his presidency. The Half of the poll was conducted before and the day of Trump's summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Quassy Amusement Park in Middlebury is closed Monday because of weather.

The forecast for Monday is rain, which can be heavy at times, and scattered storms.

A firefighter has died after falling through a floor while battling a 7-alarm house fire in Clarksville, Maryland.

Fire crews were called to the 7000 block of Woodscape Drive at 2 a.m. Monday for a report of a possible lightning strike. Howard County fire officials say three people who were inside the home were able to get out safely, but a firefighter who was battling the flames fell through the floor. 

The firefighter was rescued, but later died, officials announced at a news conference Monday morning. 

The firefighter, who has not been identified, was a 13-year veteran of the department. 

The cause of the fire is under investigation. 

A New Canaan man has died after a crash in Dartmouth, Massachusetts Friday, according to the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts. 

A news release from the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office says state police responded to a single-car crash on Route 195 Eastbound in Dartmouth around 3 p.m. Friday after the vehicle hit the Highland Avenue overpass bridge and the driver, Richard Carroll, of New Canaan, was the only person in the car. 

He was transported to St. Luke’s Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later, according to the District Attorney’s office.

A Clinton man who was accused of trying to hiring someone to murder his former wife has been convicted of murder for hire. 

James Erik Godiksen, 56, of Clinton, was charged after an AFT undercover agent revealed his murder-for-hire scheme, prosecutors said. 

Godiksen and the undercover agent exchanged multiple phone calls over four days and state prosecutors said Godiksen offered to pay the undercover agent $5,000 to murder his ex-wife and offered extra compensation for killing her new boyfriend. 

On Sept. 14, 2016, Godiksen was arrested after providing the undercover agent with a $80 "down payment" to buy a knife, along with his former wife's physical description, her phone number, her home address, her place of work and the route she takes to drive home, the U.S. attorney's office said. 

After appearing in court, Godiksen was detained. 

A federal jury found him guilty on Friday, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. 

The suspect in the deadly L.A. Trader Joe's standoff on Saturday had been fighting with his grandmother, whom he lived with, family told NBC

Twenty-eight-year-old Gene Atkins is accused of shooting his grandmother and girlfriend, leading police on a car chase, then crashing into the busy Silver Lake supermarket where he held dozens of people hostage in an hourslong standoff with the police. 

One woman was killed in the shootout. Atkins remains hospitalized.

Charleo Egland, first cousin of the suspect, lives right next door to the house where Atkins allegedly shot his 78-year-old grandmother, Mary Madison, on Saturday. Atkins was living with his grandmother at the time of the attack, Egland said.

Egland said Atkins' life was in shambles, as he had lost his job and two cars recently.

"The last thing he told me was, 'The next thing I do, I'm going to die doing it or I'm going to jail,'" Egland said.

The argument between Atkins and his grandmother started over his girlfriend being in the house along with problems over the TV, the cousins said.

"Not in my wildest dreams did I ever think this would happen," said Linda Brown, another cousin of Atkins.

Both Brown and Egland said Atkins was withdrawn and quiet, preferring to stay inside the house and watch TV. Atkins had been in and out of mental facilities since childhood, according to Egland.

"I believe he is suffering from a mental illness," said Egland. "He's not the same from when we were growing up. He changed. I don't know if it has something to do with his mom passing away because she died four years ago."

Atkins had lived with his grandmother since he was around nine, according to family members.

However, Saturday was not the first instance of violence by Atkins against his grandmother. Egland said Atkins had smashed the windows in his grandmother's house and slashed her tires.

Mary Madison is said to be recovering after her surgery at USC Hosptial. Atkin's girlfriend was grazed by a bullet and is expected to be OK.

Police are searching for two men who are believed to be armed and dangerous and were involved in a shooting in Manchester on Saturday.

According to officers, 25-year-old Anthony Gunn and 27-year-old Kevin McCray were seen driving a tan-colored 2005 Chevy Malibu when at least one shot was fired from a gun near the intersection of East Center Street and Walker Street shortly before 6:30 p.m. Gunn and McCray fled the scene in the Chevy Malibu with a Connecticut license plate of AP 06404 and have not been seen since. Gunn was last seen wearing a grey, hooded sweatshirt with a bandana over his forehead. It is unclear what McCray was wearing at the time of the incident.

Nobody was injured during the shooting, but police say Gunn and McCray are believed to be armed and dangerous. The men are known to frequent the Manchester area.

During the incident, officers evacuated nearby homes as a precaution. Police believe the victim was targeted so they say there is no direct threat to the general public. Minor property damage was reported on a nearby home.

Anyone who knows the whereabouts of Gunn and McCray or has information that could lead to their apprehension is asked to contact Detective Joseph Davis of the Manchester Police Department at (860) 643-3357.

One day after a hostage situation stunned the community, Silver Lake gathered to mourn Melyda "Mely" Maricela Corado, the manager of the area's Trader Joe's. Corado died in the standoff between police and 28-year-old Gene Atkins on Saturday.

Customers, co-workers and strangers left flowers and handwritten notes on the sidewalk outside the store where Atkins barricaded himself after allegedly shooting his grandmother and leading police on a wild chase. Corado was shot dead in the exchange of gunfire between police and Atkins at the conclusion of the pursuit.

She was 27-years-old.

Investigators are still trying to figure out whose bullet struck Corado, but that detail won't change the community's grief at losing a familiar and friendly face.

Corado moved to Silver Lake after four years at the Trader Joe's in Toluca Lake, with employees describing the store as a close knit family. Co-workers say they will miss her "loud" and "bold" personality.

Security guard Raymond Shafazarian, who started working at the Silver Lake grocery store four months earlier, was heartbroken and frustrated that he wasn't working Saturday.

"It's like I lost one of my family," Shafazarian said, visibly emotional.

Shafazarian said store policy didn't allow him to bring a gun to work.

"They don't want to us to have guns," Shafazarian said. "I have no idea why because the gun is to protect somebody from [a] crazy man, like yesterday."

However Shafazarian says he plans to bring his gun to work on Tuesday.

"If they like it or not, even if they said to me, 'You're fired,' that's fine," Shafazarian said as he failed to hold back tears.