A 14-year-old kid opened fire at a high school in the US state of Georgia on Wednesday, killing four people, including two pupils, and injuring nine others, according to police.
The alleged gunman, who was also a student at the school, was reported to the FBI more than a year ago for threats to commit a school shooting, according to the agency.
He was arrested following Wednesday’s shooting and will face adult murder charges, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Two teachers were among the fatalities.
Following the latest chapter in America’s gun violence crisis—nearly 400 mass shootings this year alone, according to one count—people gathered on a sports field outside Apalachee High School, some forming a circle with their arms intertwined.
“Our school resource officer engaged him,” county sheriff Jud Smith told reporters, referring to law enforcement officers employed to work at US schools.
“The shooter quickly realized that if he did not give up that it would end with an OIS — an officer-involved shooting. He gave up, got on the ground, and the deputy took him into custody.”
Smith said police did not yet know if the shooter singled out specific people as targets, adding later that the nine wounded were expected to recover.
The two students killed were also 14 years old, authorities said.
‘Still not safe’
After the FBI was notified of the suspected shooter, the county sheriff’s office interrogated his father and the then-13-year-old suspect, who denied the threats, before referring the youngster to school officials for further surveillance.
According to Georgia Bureau of Investigation director Chris Hosey, the shooter used a “AR-platform style weapon” and investigators are investigating how he brought the rifle into the school.
One student told AFP that others in the school originally mistook it for another shooter drill, referring to drills prevalent in US schools.
“Everyone just thought it was a fake drill until my teacher said we didn’t get an email,” Alexsandra Romeo said.
“She got us all in a little corner and everyone was just hugging each other, I had some of my friends crying. Until two police officers came in with their guns and told us that this is not a drill and that we’re still not safe.”
Another student, 17-year-old Stephanie Folgar, described hearing “loud bangs” and panicking students hiding in the bathrooms and closet.
“It’s scary knowing that that could’ve been you,” she said.
One student informed local media that he spotted blood on the floor and a body as he was escorted out of the building by police.
The incident took place near the town of Winder, some 45 miles (70 kilometers) northeast of Atlanta, the state capital.
Earlier, school officials were said to have sent a message to parents enforcing a “hard lockdown after reports of gunfire.”
Following the all-clear, parents were invited to the school to reunite with their children, with large queues of vehicles visible outside.
Gun violence ‘epidemic’
School shootings have become a tragically common event in the United States, where around one-third of adults own a firearm and limits on obtaining even powerful military-style guns are loose.
Polls suggest that a majority of people want tougher limitations on the use and purchase of firearms, but the powerful gun ownership lobby opposes new restrictions, and lawmakers have consistently failed to act.
US President Joe Biden said he was mourning the dead.
“Students across the country are learning how to duck and cover instead of how to read and write. We cannot continue to accept this as normal,” he said.
Following the shooting, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at a campaign event in New Hampshire, stating that it was time to address the “epidemic of gun violence.”
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump described the shooter as a “sick and deranged monster.”
According to the Gun Violence Archive, at least 384 mass shootings have occurred in the United States this year, with at least four victims killed or injured.
According to the GVA, at least 11,557 persons have been killed in firearm-related violence in the United States this year.