COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — A 20-year-old transient who started a wildfire and then fatally shot two firefighters and wounded another in northern Idaho attacked first responders after they asked him to move his vehicle, a sheriff said Monday.

Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris provided new information about the Sunday ambush at Canfield Mountain, just north of Coeur d’Alene and a popular recreation area. He claimed Wess Roley was living out of his car, had once aspired to be a firefighter, and had only had a few minor interactions with local police.

“We have not been able to find a manifesto,” the sheriff said, adding that the motive is still unknown.

According to Norris, the victims’ families are “absolutely shocked.” They’re shocked and still processing it.”

Roley had started a fire with flint, and the firefighters who responded were caught up in an unexpected shootout. They took cover behind fire trucks, but two died and a third was injured during a barrage of gunfire that lasted several hours.

Roley eventually committed suicide, according to Norris.

“We know that he was a transient here,” the sheriff said. “We know he lived here for the majority of 2024. But I’m not sure when he arrived, why he was here, or why he chose this location.

Two helicopters converged on the area Sunday, armed with snipers ready to shoot the suspect if necessary, while the FBI tracked him down using his cellphone data and the sheriff ordered residents to shelter in place. They eventually discovered Roley dead in the mountains, with his firearm beside him.

Dale Roley, Roley’s grandfather, told KXLY-TV that his grandson enjoyed hiking, worked for a tree company, and was interested in forestry.

The outpouring of support for the victims was swift in Coeur d’Alene, a city of 55,000 people near the Washington border.

Hours after the ambush, people gathered along Interstate 90 with American flags to pay their respects as the bodies of the two fallen firefighters were transported to the medical examiner’s office in Spokane, Washington, about 35 miles (56 kilometers) from Coeur d’Alene.

Gov. Brad Little ordered that the US and Idaho state flags be lowered to half-staff until the day after the firefighters’ memorial service.

“All our public safety officers, especially our firefighters, bravely confront danger on a daily basis but we have never seen a heinous act of violence like this on our firefighters before,” the fire chief said in a statement. “This isn’t Idaho. This indescribable loss is felt deeply by everyone in the firefighting community and beyond.

The Idaho House Republican Leadership issued the following statement: “We are horrified by the murder of two firefighters in Coeur d’Alene, and shocked by such a vicious attack on our first responders. We are praying for them, the injured, their families, and colleagues.

The shelter-in-place order was lifted, but the sheriff’s office warned residents to be prepared because the fire was still burning. Firefighters were still battling the blaze on Monday, which was made difficult by the fact that it was burning in steep terrain, limiting the use of heavy equipment, according to a news release from the Idaho Department of Lands. It had burned approximately 26 acres.

Fire is always a concern in the region, according to Bruce Deming, whose property borders the trail system. When he saw smoke on the ridge Sunday afternoon, he wondered why no firefighting helicopters were dispatched.

When a friend texted him about the shooting, he realized why he wasn’t seeing planes: “Because they’re afraid of being shot at,” he explained.