BEND, United States – Three children and a teacher have been killed after a 16-year-old gunman stormed Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, in a shooting that left two other victims critically injured.
The teenager was also killed after a community member pursued him into the school and shot him, Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz said.
The children killed were aged five, eight and 11. A seven-year-old child and a 54-year-old teacher were taken to hospital in critical condition, according to police.
Authorities have not identified the suspect or the victims publicly. Investigators have also not established whether the teenager had any connection to the school.
Gunman Forced His Way Into School
Police said the suspect forced his way into Silver Rail Elementary School on Thursday afternoon by firing at locked doors.
Bend Police Department spokeswoman Sheila Miller said officers were alerted to an active shooter at 12:59 p.m. local time.
The first emergency call came from a person who reported that an unknown suspect was shooting at their vehicle with a long gun. Photographs released from the scene showed a red truck with bullet holes.
Minutes later, county dispatchers received 911 calls reporting that the attacker had entered the school.
Police said the teenager fired at door locks to gain access to the building.
Local media reports indicated that the school received new classroom doors in 2022, with locking mechanisms that could be activated by flipping a switch.
Bystander Confronted And Shot Attacker
Krantz said a community member witnessed the shooting unfold, pursued the attacker into the school and engaged him, fatally shooting the teenager.
Police officers arrived about three minutes after the first reports of the school attack. They confirmed that the suspect had been killed before searching the building.
Authorities have not released further details about the suspect or explained what may have motivated the attack.
School District Mourns Victims
Steven Cook, the senior administrative official of the local school district, said the community was struggling to come to terms with the loss.
“We are stunned and heartbroken by this senseless tragedy,” Cook said in a statement.
“No words can adequately express the grief our community is experiencing.”
Silver Rail Elementary School serves approximately 450 pupils and has more than 40 adult staff members, police said.
Schools in Bend were closed on Friday as officials gave families and residents time to grieve and begin coping with the tragedy.
US School Shootings Remain A Concern
The attack adds to the continuing toll of gun violence at American schools.
According to the K-12 School Shooting Database, there were 235 shooting incidents at US schools last year, with at least 140 recorded so far this year, based on the figures cited in the report.
Investigators have yet to establish whether the teenager had a connection to Silver Rail Elementary or what led him to attack the school.
