PERRY — A 17-year-old teenager killed a sixth-grade student and wounded five other people when he opened fire this Thursday at a high school in Iowain the northern United States, authorities reported.
The shooter was found “with a self-inflicted wound” and had two weapons, including a shotgun, said Mitch Mortvedt, deputy director of the Criminal Investigation Division. Iowa. The injured are four students and an administrator of the center, he added.
The official added that at least one of the victims is a school administrator.
Two people who were shot were taken by ambulance to Iowa Methodist Medical Center in the state capital, Des Moines, a spokesman for the health system said. Other people were taken to a second hospital in Des Moines, a spokesperson for MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center confirmed, declining to comment on the number of people or their health status.
The state capital is about 64 kilometers (40 miles) southeast of Perry, which has about 8,000 residents.
High school senior Ava Augustus said she was in a counselor’s office, waiting for hers to arrive, when she heard three gunshots. She and others blocked the door, preparing to throw things if necessary, since the window was too small to escape from.
“And then we heard ‘He was struck down.’ You can come out,’” Augustus said through tears. ”And I ran and saw glass everywhere, blood on the ground. “I got to my car and they were taking a girl who had been shot in the leg out of the auditorium.”
In Washington, US Attorney General Merrick Garland was briefed on the shooting. FBI agents from the Omaha-Des Moines office are assisting in the investigation led by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.
An active shooter was reported at 7:37 a.m. Thursday morning and officers arrived seven minutes later, said Adam Infante of Dallas County. He added during a news conference that police located several people with injuries, but could not confirm how many there were or their conditions.
Zander Shelley, 15, was in a hallway waiting to enter class when he heard gunshots and ran into a classroom, said his father, Kevin Shelley. Zander was grazed by two bullets and remained hidden in the living room before sending a text to her father at 7:36 in the morning.
Garbage truck driver Kevin Shelley told his boss he had to leave. “It’s the most scared I’ve ever been in my entire life,” he said.
Erica Jolliff said her daughter, who is in the ninth grade, reported being rushed out of school at 7:45 a.m. Dazed, Jolliff was still looking for her sixth-grade son Amir an hour later.
“I just want to know that he’s okay, but they’re not telling me anything,” Jolliff said.
Source: With information from AP/EDITORIAL
