A shooter in Canada kills 9 people and wounds 25 others in a school and a home

Vancouver, British Columbia — Shooting at a school in the north of the country British Columbia Canadian authorities announced on Tuesday that seven people were killed, while two others were found dead in a nearby house. A woman who police believe was the shooter was also found dead, apparently from a self-inflicted wound.

More than 25 people were injured, including two who were airlifted to hospital with life-threatening injuries, after the shooting at Tumbler Ridge High School, RCMP said.

Tumbler Ridge is located in the Canadian Rockies more than 1,000 kilometers (600 mi) northeast of Vancouver, near the provincial border with… Alberta. The county government’s website lists Tumbler Ridge High School as an enrollment of 175 students from seventh through 12th grades.

British Columbia Premier David Eby told reporters that police officers arrived at the school within two minutes.

A video clip showed students leaving the school with their hands raised while police cars surrounded the building and a helicopter flew overhead.

RCMP Chief Ken Floyd said police found six dead. A seventh person died while being taken to hospital, and two others were found dead in a house that authorities believe is connected to the attack. The suspect appears to have died from a “self-inflicted injury.”

Floyd told reporters that investigators had identified a female suspect but had not revealed her name, and that the shooter’s motive was still unclear. He added that police are still investigating the relationship between the shooter and the victims.

Tumbler Ridge Mayor Darrell Krakowka said it was “devastating” to learn the death toll in the community of 2,700, which he described as a “big family.”

“I collapsed,” Krakowka said. “I’ve lived here for 18 years. I probably know every one of the victims.”

Pastor George Rowe of Tumbler Ridge Fellowship Baptist Church went to the recreation center where families of the victims were waiting for more information.

“It was not a pretty sight,” Rowe said. “Families are still waiting to find out if their child is the deceased, and because of protocol and procedures, the investigation team is being very cautious in revealing names.” “The big thing tonight is that I have to leave and the families are still waiting to find out. It’s very difficult. There are other priests and counselors, so they’re not alone.”

Rowe taught high school and his three children graduated from there.

“Walking the halls of that school will never be the same again,” he said.

The high school and Tumbler Ridge Elementary School will be closed for the rest of the week, the school district said.

School shootings are rare in Canada, which has strict gun control laws.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a social media post that he was devastated by the shooting.

“I join Canadians in grieving with those whose lives were irrevocably changed today, and in gratitude for the courage and selflessness shown by the first responders who risked their lives to protect their fellow citizens,” he wrote.

Carney’s office said he was suspending his scheduled trip to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Munich, Germany. He is scheduled to announce his long-awaited defense industries strategy in Halifax on Wednesday before heading to Europe to attend the Munich Security Conference.

Eby said he spoke to Carney about the “unimaginable tragedy.”

“I know this makes us all hug our kids a little tighter tonight,” he said. “I’m asking the people of British Columbia to take care of the people of Tumbler Ridge tonight.”

The Canadian government has responded to previous mass shootings with gun control measures, including: It has recently been expanded Ban all weapons you consider to be offensive weapons.

Tuesday’s shooting was the deadliest in Canada since 2020, when a gunman entered Nova Scotia killed 13 people They set fires that left nine others dead.

___

Gillis reported from Toronto.