School shooting north of Seattle results in at least two deaths
A student opened fire in a high school north of Seattle on Friday, resulting in at least two deaths and serious injuries to several others, officials said.
The gunman, who authorities say was acting alone and whose name has not been released, is one of those deaths and turned the gun on himself, police said. The other death was of a girl, according to police.
The student began shooting in the cafeteria of Marysville-Pilchuck High School in Marysville, Wash., on Friday morning, police and witnesses said.
Authorities first learned of the shooting after receiving a 911 call about 10:30 a.m. from someone said to be inside the school, Marysville Police Commander Robb Lamoureux said at a news conference.
“We started hearing these loud banging noises, like someone hitting a trash can,” freshmen Brandon Carr told The Seattle Times. “Once I knew it was gunshots, we just booked it.”
As events unfolded, students – including Brandon – hid in classrooms before being evacuated to a nearby church. There, students were able to reunite with parents, some of whom had been in touch with their children throughout the ordeal via text message.
Local television coverage showed the police presence while students were escorted off the school premises.
Marysville, a town of about 60,000, is located some 35 miles outside Seattle. The Marysville School District serves about 11,000 students total, with eight high schools in all.
The school district is among three that were recently chosen to share a $10 million federal grant for improved student mental-health services, according to The Seattle Times. Administrators were working on plans for the funds before the shooting Friday, the paper said.
Marysville-Pilchuck High School went into lockdown after the shooting.
It is unknown what motive, if any, the shooter had, Mr. Lamoureux told reporters. The shooter, reportedly a high school freshman, opened fire seemingly unprovoked and out of nowhere, according to accounts in various publications.
Three patients being treated for injuries at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, Wash., were in "very critical condition," according to a hospital official. Another patient who sustained "less serious" injuries was transferred to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
Ayn Dietrich-Williams, an FBI spokeswoman in Seattle, said the agency had personnel on their way to the scene to help authorities with the investigation.
Media reports have already drawn comparisons to a string of other recent shootings, including a June shooting at Seattle Pacific University by a lone gunman.
• Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.
