Three children and teacher killed after teenager opens fire at Oregon elementary school

A teenager with a gun opened fire at an elementary school in Oregon, killing three children and a teacher. Emergency services were called to the scene at Silver Rail Elementary School in the city of Bend after reports of gunfire. Officers arriving seconds later found that the suspect, a 16-year-old boy, had been shot dead, possibly by a bystander, according to police. Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz told a press conference: "The deceased at the scene included three children aged five, eight and 11 and one teacher." A seven-year-old student and a 54-year-old teacher were also taken to a nearbu hospital with critical injuries. Mr Krantz said "The suspect had been shot by a community member who had seen the suspect enter the school and pursued him into the school and engaged him". Bend is a city of some 100,000 people in central Oregon, about 175 miles (280 km) southeast of Portland. Silver Rail Elementary School serves kindergarten through to the fifth grade, roughly ages five to 11. Police then confirmed that the school was secure by checking each classroom, and that the suspect was dead, with pupils still being reunited with their parents at a nearby church. Bend-La Pine Schools Superintendent Steven Cook said in a statement, "We are stunned and heartbroken by this senseless tragedy. "We extend our deepest sympathy to the families and to everyone affected by this violence. No words can adequately express the grief our community is experiencing." FBI Director Kash Patel said Portland agents were on the scene and assisting local partners in the investigation. He said: "We will make every resource they need available." Senator 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." School buses carrying students and staff members later arrived at the reunification centre set up at the nearby Journey Church. US Representative Maxine Dexter, a physician who represents a portion of Portland east of the Willamette River, called the shooting a "devastating day for Oregon." She said: "Schools should be places of learning, friendship and joy. It is incumbent on me, and every lawmaker, to do everything we can to ensure our kids are safe." School shootings have become a recurring feature of American life, including high-profile attacks such as those at Columbine High School in 1999, Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018, and Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in 2022. Each shooting revives debates over gun laws in a country where gun rights are protected under the Constitution's Second Amendment. Gun rights advocates have argued for arming teachers as a means of defence. Follow related topics: