3 children and a teacher were killed in Oregon elementary school shooting, police say. The teen shooter is also dead
CNN
By Emma Tucker and John Miller, CNN
(CNN) — Three children, aged 5, 8 and 11, and one teacher were killed when a 16-year-old Bend, Oregon, resident entered an elementary school and started shooting, police said at a news conference Thursday evening.
The shooter, armed with a long gun, forced his way into the school by shooting at locked doors, but it’s unclear how far he made it into the building, said Chief Mike Krantz of Bend Police Department.
A community member who saw the teenager entering Silver Rail Elementary School at about 1 p.m. followed him in before engaging him in gunfire, killing him before responding officers arrived, Krantz said.
A 7-year-old child and another teacher were also injured and transferred to a hospital, according to officials.
It’s not yet clear whether the shooter had any connection to the school, what specific type of long gun he used or how many rounds he fired, Krantz said, citing the ongoing investigation. Police did not identify him at a news conference Thursday night, nor did they speak about any potential motive.
The first 911 call indicated an “unknown man had shot into a car,” moments before multiple calls to police reported a person had entered the school and started shooting, police said.
Silver Rail Elementary was placed on lockdown, and the Bend Police Department set up a reunification point for student families.
The FBI is on the scene and assisting in the ongoing investigation, according to FBI Director Kash Patel. “We will make every resource they need available,” he said on X.
The tragedy at Silver Rail Elementary marks the 36th shooting on K-12 school grounds this year, according to CNN’s analysis of events reported by the Gun Violence Archive, Education Week and Everytown for Gun Safety. Swarms of police officers and ambulances racing to the grounds of a school ravaged by gunfire has become a familiar scene, and one that represents only the beginning of incalculable pain, loss and trauma.
The community member who took down the shooter was described as heroic by Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek at the news conference Thursday night, saying the person “intervened to stop further loss of life.”
Almost a year ago, Kotek said she went to Silver Rail Elementary School to “spend time with educators and community members, calling parents to congratulate them on the attendance that their students were showing in the school.”
“I heard the joy and the excitement from those parents in those conversations,” Kotek continued. “So, my heart is absolutely broken today, and our hearts will stay broken in the days and weeks ahead.”
An EMS radio dispatch captured the initial moments as the tragedy unfolded at the school.
“It looks like the shooter has been neutralized, possibly shot by a father at the school,” the dispatch audio said. Officials at the news conference described the person who shot the suspect only as a “community member” and did not specify their connection to the school.
Bend-La Pine Schools Superintendent Steven Cook choked up at the news conference as he expressed his gratitude to staff members who “helped our students and protected our kids today.”
“This is the kind of thing you hear about in other places and pray that it never happens here. And it has happened here today,” Cook said.
In the coming days, crisis counselors from across the region will be available to students, families, employees of the school district and “anyone in this community that needs support right now,” Cook added.
A large police presence will be at the school over the next several days, according to the police chief.
“There are not really any words I can say to any of you that will make this better. But please know that we are working hard to ensure that we conduct a thorough investigation,” Krantz said.
A large crowd of parents and concerned community members had gathered outside the school Thursday afternoon as they waited for updates. There was a large police and emergency personnel response, including police vehicles, ambulances and a fire truck.
Sierra Jordan, who works at a business less than half a mile from the school, told CNN the typical laughter of children playing outside for recess was replaced by a swarm of ambulances, police officers and other first responders rushing to the scene.
Jordan had never seen so many police officers in her life, she said, adding one of her coworkers was on a walk outside when she heard gunfire around 1 p.m. That coworker was not sure exactly how many shots she heard.
The situation is “absolutely heartbreaking,” Jordan said.
School buses carrying students and staff members later arrived at the reunification center set up at the nearby Journey Church.
Over 400 students are enrolled at Silver Rail Elementary. All Bend-La Pine Schools will be closed on Friday, including activities and athletic events, the district said.
Bend Mayor Melanie Kebler said at the news conference there will be gatherings in the coming days to mourn, to honor the lives lost in the shooting and to “begin the difficult process of healing.”
“No matter how you’re feeling right now — angry, sad, devastated, numb — those are valid feelings, and in the coming days, we’re all going to need to lean on each other for support,” Kebler said.
Former Bend Mayor Jeff Eager described the shooting as “unimaginable.”
“Bend is a place that people move to from bigger cities. They move here because it’s relatively safe here, they move here because we have schools you can walk your kids to,” Eager told CNN’s Pamela Brown. “You can’t imagine that it happens here.”
Eager said the school was built in recent years, adding the school district has invested a lot in security.
In a statement responding to the tragedy, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon said: “My heart is with the victims of today’s shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School and their loved ones now facing the consequences of another school shooting in America.”
“Once again we must ask how many schools must be shot up before Republicans agree to act to curb gun violence,” he continued.
This story has been updated with additional information.
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CNN’s Leigh Waldman, Amanda Jackson and Maria Aguilar Prieto contributed to this report.
