The troopers, Joseph Perechinsky and William Jenkins, were dispatched to check the welfare of an individual, and there was additional information about shots being fired, police said.

“Upon their arrival, they were immediately fired upon and ambushed. They are very lucky to be alive,” an officer said at a media briefing later. Trooper Jenkins was more seriously injured, and Perechinsky applied a tourniquet to him.

“Perechinsky was able to commandeer a tractor-trailer that was driving by, and he ordered the driver of that tractor-trailer to pull his semi rig across the roadway so that more people would not drive down that roadway and potentially be subjected to the fire,”state police Col. Christopher Paris said.

Perechinsky was “still thinking at that point in time, after being shot twice in the chest, what can I do to secure this location? What can I do to make sure nobody else gets hurt?” Paris said. The troopers were flown to hospitals for medical care.

The investigators are looking into the past of the Faino but have not yet spoken about the motive behind the fatal shooting. As Paris pointed out, Faino first shot Wasko, and then fired at troopers Perechinsky and Jenkins. He then shot a police drone from the sky, sitting next to a propane sparking fears of a potential explosion.

“I don’t want to speak to his motive leading up to this. I would say you can draw certain conclusions from the standpoint that we believe Faino shot our victim prior to our arrival and then from a position of tactical advantage fired dozens and dozens of rounds,” Paris said.

After Wasko was shot, her boyfriend called 911 from their home to report the shooting, which led to the initial police response on Thursday afternoon. Additionally, Faino also hot at an SUV and injured an emergency responder who was operating the vehicle. The responder is being treated for injuries and is in a stable condition, the police confirmed.