Three police officers are shot after being ambushed in Maryland 

The officers were responding to a reported home invasion about 6.30 pm at an address in Hyattsville, a city about 32 miles southwest of Baltimore, police said.

‘Within seconds of arriving, they were under fire,’ Prince George’s County Interim Police Chief Hector Velez said. ‘They were ambushed.’

Two of the three officers shot were ‘saved’ by their vests, Velez said.

One officer was struck in the chest and had injuries to an arm and a leg. Another officer was shot in the back. The third officer was wounded in the foot.

The officers returned gunfire, and two men were in custody. The men were not injured, police said.

Mr Velez also said the officers provided themselves with ‘self-care’ after being shot, which allowed them to be transported to a hospital for further treatment.

‘They’re gonna be fine,’ Valez said. ‘They are in good spirits, they are concerned about each other.’

The chief added: ‘This is the call you hope you never get, and we were just so shaken tonight to have gotten the call that three of our officers had been shot.

‘All three of these officers are nothing short of heroes.’

Governor Larry Hogan tweeted: ‘We are all extending our prayers to the three officers shot tonight in Prince George’s County. @MDSP has offered its full support for the investigation.’