A woman in a rural neighborhood in Georgia is likely alive only because she had access to a firearm when she needed it.

According to local media reports, a woman was sleeping when two suspects broke into her home. She accessed a firearm and became involved in a firefight with the suspects.

During the exchange of gunfire the woman was shot at least three times. Fortunately, she was also able to return fire and force the suspects into retreating.

The victim is being treated at an area hospital and is expected to survive. According to local media reports:

Rainwater said investigators spent much of the day at the home. The suspects have been described only as a black man and woman. Both remain at large. Authorities do not know if the suspects were wounded in the shootout, however, they have “zero reason to believe” they are still in the area,” Rainwater said. According to Rainwater, they were last seen driving away from the area, though authorities do not have a description of the getaway vehicle. Rainwater added that investigators are treating the situation as a burglary gone wrong and probably won’t have any leads on the suspects unless someone with information about them comes forward.

This is the 76th defensive gun use we’ve documented in the state of Georgia and the 1,394th defensive gun use we’ve documented overall.