Rocky Mount police say a man accidently shot and killed his mother during Mother's Day dog attack

The shooting happened around 2:30 p.m. Sunday at a house on Meadowbrook Road near Springfield Road, according to the Rocky Mount Police Department. A sign above the door at Christopher Edwards’ house says, "Beware of The Dog."

Edwards, 42, is the son of Sarah Hankerson.

Hankerson, 72, came by her son’s home every day to help take care of his pit bull, neighbor Morris Wynn said.

Wynn had known Hankerson for about 10 years and spoke with her Sunday.

“[I] called her and told her ‘Happy Mother’s Day,’” Wynn said.

Wynn said Hankerson went to church on Sunday, and he waved to her again after she returned to her son’s house.

"She was a giving person, and I will miss her because I get up and I see her about every morning when she'd come over and feed the dog,” Wynn said through sobs.

Police said the dog attacked Edwards. He then grabbed his gun and fired a shot while struggling with the dog, police said.

A police spokesman said the medical examiner found that a bullet struck his mother, who died on the scene.

Edwards went to the hospital and is now wearing a cast on his forearm. He declined to speak on camera, but he told WRAL News, "I lost my mom."

"She was an amazing woman," he said. "She was loving. We just ask for prayer from the community, and privacy and respect."

The police spokesman said while the shooting is still under investigation, it appears to have been an accident.

“I love her and I miss her,” Wynn said of Hankerson.

Wynn said Hankerson was "a God-fearing woman" who attended Saint John's 3:16 Missionary Baptist Church.

"I'm praying to God this will strengthen the family, [that] the family will come together and that something good may come out of this,” Wynn said.

A police spokesman said the dog is now in quarantine at the police department's Animal Services Unit.