Three children and teacher killed in Oregon school shooting

A 16-year-old gunman killed three children and a teacher at an elementary school in Bend, Oregon, on Thursday, police said. A community member pursued the attacker into the building and shot him. Officers later found the teenager dead inside the school.

The children killed at Silver Rail Elementary School were five, eight and 11 years old, Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz said. A seven-year-old child and a 54-year-old teacher were taken to a hospital with critical injuries. According to The Guardian, both remained in critical condition Thursday evening. Authorities have notified the victims’ families but have not released their names.

Emergency services began receiving calls at about 12:59 p.m. local time. The first caller reported that someone with a long gun had fired multiple times at their vehicle. More calls followed as the attacker entered the school, which went into lockdown at 1:01 p.m. Police arrived shortly afterward.

“What the initial investigation is showing is that the shooter had forced their way into the school by shooting at locked doors,” Krantz said. Police have not identified the firearm used in the attack.

Krantz said the community member pursued the attacker inside the school and shot him. Officers confirmed the suspect was dead, searched the building for additional threats and then provided emergency aid to the victims.

Police identified the shooter as a Bend resident but have not released his name or a motive. Investigators are trying to determine whether he had any ties to the school. Authorities also have not identified the person who intervened.

Police evacuated the school room by room. Students and staff were taken by bus to a nearby church to reunite with their families. The BBC reported that about 450 children attend Silver Rail Elementary, which has more than 40 adult staff members.

“We are stunned and heartbroken by this senseless tragedy,” Steven Cook, the local school district’s top administrative official, said in a statement quoted by the BBC. “No words can adequately express the grief our community is experiencing.” Schools across Bend will be closed Friday.

Oregon Governor Tina Kotek mourned the victims and addressed the bystander who confronted the attacker. “To the community member who heroically intervened to stop further loss of life, your actions carry a heavy emotional burden, and I just want you to know that my thoughts are with you as well,” she said, according to Al Jazeera.

The FBI is assisting local investigators. Its director, Kash Patel, said the agency would make every resource local law enforcement needs available. Krantz said the investigation is continuing and more information would be released in the coming days.