By Karina Tsui, Amanda Musa, Gabe Cohen, John Miller, Josh Campbell, CNN

Spring Grove, Pennsylvania (CNN) — When officers in rural Pennsylvania approached a farmhouse to serve a warrant Wednesday afternoon, they had no idea of the danger they would face as an armed man dressed in camouflage lurked in nearby cornfields.

The shooter began opening fire, striking and killing three officers, before moving toward the house in York County, law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation told CNN. Two more officers were struck, while one was able to return fire, killing the shooter, the officials said.

The exchange of gunfire “wasn’t a quick ordeal,” witness Dave Miller told CNN affiliate WGAL, who recalled at least 30 shots fired. Miller said he was on his way home when he saw police searching for someone in a barn. Moments later, he heard gunfire and saw people on the ground.

“My heart was pounding, my heart was pounding,” Miller told CNN. “And then I looked at all the tall corn next to me and thought, well, if they didn’t get him, he’s on the run and he could come through the cornfield.”

Miller described a large police presence descending on the area –– with officers in riot gear and long rifles arriving in droves. “I never thought I’d see anything like that. I’ve never been to war, I’m not a veteran. It seemed like a war zone,” Miller said.

The shootout unfolded around 2 p.m. in North Codorus Township, a pastoral area dotted with small barns and sprawling farm land about 115 miles west of Philadelphia, where Miller said the threat of gun violence was not something residents were used to.

Law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation told CNN that officers with the Northern York County Regional Police and the Sheriff’s Office were attempting to serve a warrant to the suspect, the ex-boyfriend of a woman who lived in the farmhouse.

The woman had reported seeing the ex-boyfriend stalking the residence on Tuesday, prompting Northern York County Regional Police Department to obtain an arrest warrant and restraining order.

Police attempted to serve the shooter with an order Tuesday night, but could not locate him, according to the officials.

The shooter appeared to be lying in wait when officers arrived, the sources said. The shooter was wearing camouflage, according to the law enforcement officials.

It’s not yet clear to investigators whether the shooter was waiting for his ex-girlfriend or the arresting officers.

Authorities have not yet identified the shooter or the officers involved. The two wounded officers are in critical, but stable condition, Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Col. Christopher Paris said in a press conference Wednesday.

“The grief will be unbearable, but we will bear it,” said Paris, as he pledged a full, fair investigation. He did not give details on the circumstances of how they were shot, citing an ongoing investigation.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said he and other officials met Wednesday with the families of the slain officers.

“This is an absolutely tragic and devastating day,” he told reporters.

“We need to do better as a society,” Shapiro said. We need to help the people who think that picking up a gun, picking up a weapon is the answer to resolving disputes.”

Wednesday’s shooting was among the deadliest days for Pennsylvania police this century, the Associated Press reported, and comes just months after an officer was killed during a shootout with a man who was holding staff members at a hospital hostage in the county. The attacker was also killed.

Paris said that the Pennsylvania State Police would “convene a major case team” in partnership with the York County District Attorney’s Office over the latest incident and that state authorities had been in touch with the FBI.

The FBI along with agents from the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are supporting local officials, US Attorney General Pam Bondi said in an X post Wednesday afternoon.

“Violence against law enforcement is a scourge on our society and never acceptable. Pray for the officers involved,” Bondi added.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said in a post on X: “Learning that three officers were killed in York County where I worked for many years as a prosecutor, and where I still call home, is unfathomable.”

“The death of any public servant is an absolute tragedy,” Sunday said in a statement alongside the post.

On Wednesday afternoon, officers had blocked off roads near the barn to keep people away from the scene and the nearby Spring Grove School District temporarily ordered students to shelter in place, before lifting the order hours later.

Police departments across the region have offered their condolences and people have begun leaving flowers at the headquarters of the Northern York Regional Police Department, AP reported.

Dozens of police and emergency vehicles with their lights flashing also formed a procession Wednesday evening for the three officers killed as people lined the roads holding American flags and saluted as it passed.

So far this year, 37 law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty, according to data from the FBI. A total of 64 officer deaths involved a crime in 2024, the data shows.

This story has been updated.

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CNN’s Danya Gainor contributed to this report.