Fatal shooting incident rocks Glenwood

Three people are dead following a shooting and explosion in a once quiet neighborhood on North Grove Street in Glenwood last Wednesday.

At approximately 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, dispatchers with the Mills County Emergency Communications Center received multiple reports of a shooting on the 400 block of North Grove Street. Officers from the Glenwood Police Department, Mills County Sheriff’s Office and Iowa State Patrol responded.

Upon arrival, law enforcement found the residence at 405 Grove Street engulfed in flames and two adult victims with gunshot wounds outside near the residence.  

The shooting victims have been identified as husband and wife, Brandon Oman and Stevie Oman. Brandon Oman, 38, was pronounced dead at the scene, and Stevie Oman, 35, was transported to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, where she later died from her injuries.

The suspected shooter, identified as Dennis Burnell, 71, was taken into custody as he exited his burning home. Burnell was injured during the incident and was transported to a medical facility in critical condition. Burnell died of his injuries two days later at the University of Kansas Medical Center Burn Unit.

The Glenwood Police Department, the Mills County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation said the State Fire Marshal continue to investigate.

In a press release, the DCI said the shooting stemmed from an “interpersonal dispute between the parties.”

According to the Mills County Assessor’s online property records, the Omans lived at 408 North Grove Street.

In a press conference late Wednesday night, Glenwood Police Chief Eric Johansen confirmed that police have been called to the neighborhood in the past, but declined to elaborate on those incidents.

Last August, Burnell was found guilty of a misdemeanor for allegedly harassing a neighbor. He paid a $105 fine and a “no contact” order was issued against him as a result of that case.

It is unclear if Wednesday’s incident is related or the neighbors targeted in that case were the Omans.

Johansen did confirm shots were fired before the fire engulfed the home. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

“There was some type of explosion in the house before the fire started,” Johansen said.

Neighbor Joann Birch, who lives a half a block to the north of Burnell’s home, was home during the incident. She said a bullet came through a window on the south side of her apartment and lodged in the wall.

“He was on the other side,” Birch said of the shooter. “He saw me. He looked at me.”

Birch went outside of her apartment after seeing Burnell enter the street.

“I figured I would come out and I would at least get a visual on him so I could tell the police what this guy looks like so that someone can catch him,” she said. “I didn’t know at the time who he was. All I know, I come over here and all of a sudden as I just get to the very edge of this building, he’s there pointing his gun.”

Birch said she heard the shooter fire five more shots and she ducked behind the building.

After witnessing the handful of shots in the street, Birch saw Burnell walk back towards his home, south on Grove. She later directed arriving officers to his location. An officer instructed Birch to go back inside, telling her “there’s an active shooter.”

Birch was watching the incident unfold out her window when Burnell’s house exploded.

“I watched his house blow out. I’d never seen a whole wall physically go ‘boom’ like that. There were no flames, just a big boom.

“I thought he blew him himself up. I thought he was the guy that didn’t make it. I had no idea he had already shot the other people and killed them.”

Like many in the community, the incident has rocked Birch. A native of England, she isn’t sure if she wants to continue living in the apartment.

“This place just went from calm – everything’s cool. Now, all of sudden everything has cut loose. This has turned into a crazy place.”

Glenwood Mayor Angie Winquist issued a statement Thursday afternoon offering her condolences to the Oman family and praising the action of law enforcement.

“My heart goes out to everyone impacted by the tragic shooting incident that occurred in Glenwood on the evening of Aug, 6, 2025,” read the release. “I want to extend my deepest gratitude to the Glenwood Police, Glenwood Fire and Rescue, Mills County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa State Patrol and all other agencies that responded and for your courageous and heroic efforts. Without a second thought, you always put the safety of our community first.”