Eight people, including a suspect, have been killed in a shooting at a high school in the Canadian province of British Columbia, authorities said Tuesday.
Officials said two more people were found dead in a house, who are suspected to be linked to the incident.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement, “As part of the initial response to an active shooting, police entered the school to determine the threat. During the search, officers located multiple victims. A man, believed to be the attacker, was found dead from a self-inflicted injury.”.
Canadian media have described the attacker as a woman, which would be unusual, as mass shootings in North America are almost always perpetrated by men.
At a news conference, RCMP declined to provide any details about the identity of the suspect or the type of weapon used.
Six people were shot dead at a high school, two more died at home
Six people, including the suspect, were found at the school, RCMP said. The seventh victim died on the way to the hospital.
More than 25 people were injured in the shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School. This includes two people with serious or life-threatening injuries who were airlifted to hospital.
Police said all remaining students and staff were evacuated and did not believe there were any additional suspects or danger to the public.
They received reports of an active shooting around 1:20 pm local time (20:20 UTC/GMT) on Tuesday, February 10.
Prime Minister Mark Carney condemned the shootings
Prime Minister Mark Carney issued a statement of support for the affected families, saying “Devastated by today’s deadly shooting at Tumbler Ridge.“
Larry Neufeld, MLA for Peace River South, told reporters at the legislature that an “extra” amount of resources, including RCMP and ambulance assistance, have been sent to the community.
He said he did not want to release any further information out of concern that it could jeopardize the security of the ongoing operation.
Tumbler Ridge is a remote Canadian town
Tumbler Ridge is a remote municipality with a population of approximately 2,400 people. It is located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, near the border with Alberta, more than 1,000 kilometers (600 mi) north of Vancouver.
School shootings are rare in Canada. The Tumbler Ridge shooting is the second-deadliest school shooting in Canadian history, according to Canadian national broadcaster CBC.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar
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