Man wielding axe attacks patients at medical centre as 'heroic' staff fight back

Staff and patients of a hospital in Australia have been described as "heroic" for jumping in the way of an axe-wielding man during a rampage this morning.

The man is said to have entered the View Street Medical practice in North Perth before chopping at a female employee. The woman was rushed to hospital where she was treated for serious but not life-threatening injuries. The suspect, who has not been identified but is 55 years old, was taken into custody and being questioned over the vicious incident.

According to Acting Detective Senior Sergeant Matt Batson, it was the patients who helped subdue the attacker and prevent the injury toll from being higher.

The Western Australian cited him saying: "Members of the public did detain the male at the time and I'd like to thank them for their heroic actions. This is a serious incident ... this is very frightening for everybody involved and again I'd like to thank those members of the public who stood up and were able to detain the male."

Patients were praised for managing to subdue the attacker (Google Maps)

He added that the attacker's motive is not yet known. It's also unknown if the man was one of the centre's patients. Charges against him are currently pending. A large emergency response, including forensics officers, can still be seen close to the crime scene.

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Earlier this year, four kids aged between five and seven were brutally murdered when a man scaled the wall of a nursery in Brazil and went on a rampage with an axe. The person responsible for the attack in Blumenau, southern Brazil, was arrested after turning himself in at the Military Police Battalion, authorities said.

A fifth child was left in serious condition and four others, also injured, were taken to Santo Antônio Hospital. The hospital confirmed that it received babies and toddlers between the ages of "zero to two years old". The man turned himself in at a police station and did not appear to have any connection with the school. Authorities were searching for a motive, a police detective told television reporters in Blumenau.