Three children and a teacher were killed in a shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, police said. The suspect, a 16-year-old, was shot dead by a bystander.
The attack took place on Thursday, October 15, in the afternoon local time (overnight from Thursday to Friday in Poland). Citing Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz, the AP reported that the murdered children were 5, 8 and 11 years old. A teacher was also killed.
Course of events
According to ABC News, police received a call at 12:59 from a driver who had been shot at several times by a person carrying a long gun. Shortly afterwards, calls began coming into the Deschutes County dispatch center that the shooter was at the school. Officers were on the scene at about 1:02 p.m.
Krantz said the attacker got into the building by shooting through a locked door. Police said the 16-year-old Bend resident was shot dead by a “community member” who saw him enter the school and followed him. Police credit this man with preventing more victims (NBC News). The suspect’s identity has not been publicly released.
Injured and situation at the school
According to police, two people in critical condition were taken to hospital: a 7-year-old child and a 54-year-old teacher. The school has 400–450 students and about 40 staff. Parents collected their children from a reunification point at the nearby Journey Church. The Bend-La Pine School District cancelled classes at all schools on Friday. The FBI is working at the scene.
The death toll may still change, especially as two injured people are in critical condition. In earlier reports, local station KPTV had said five people were killed, including the suspect. District Superintendent Steven Cook called the incident an “unimaginable tragedy.”
Motive and investigation
As of publication, police had not disclosed a motive or information about where the weapon came from. The victims’ names have not been released either. It is not known whether the suspect had any connection to the school.
Context
Bend is about 3.5 hours’ drive southeast of Portland. The city had already experienced a shooting in 2022, when two people and the gunman died at a Safeway supermarket. That incident was not related to the current attack.
What it means
For readers in Poland, this is above all news of another attack on a school in the US. There are no reports of Polish victims. Further updates from police and the district, including on the condition of the injured and the names of the victims, should follow in the coming hours.
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