For the inhabitants of the village Porepunkah in the Australian Alps, the advice from the police is to continue "staying indoors for the time being". School and local businesses are still closed since a 56-year-old man shot and killed two police officers and injured a third.
It's quite shocking, but we're sticking together and looking out for each other, says local resident Linda to ABC.
It was during Tuesday morning that the police came to the man's farm outside Porepunkah to carry out a house search. He is then said to have opened fire and then fled into the forest.
The man is believed to consider himself outside of normal society and does not follow common laws or police orders. He is assumed to be heavily armed.
Hundreds of police officers are participating in the search.
He is obviously a very dangerous person and must be caught. That's why we've called in all available resources, says Victoria's police chief Mike Bush.
The search for the man has been complicated by the weather conditions. Rain and strong winds are now expected to be replaced by snow.
The man's partner and children were questioned during Tuesday evening local time.
Porepunkah is located about twelve miles southwest of Mount Kosciuszko, the highest mountain on the Australian mainland. The area is very sparsely populated but is located along a popular tourist route through the mountain area.
