A community member chased a teenage gunman into an Oregon elementary school and helped stop the rampage after four people were killed, officials said the intervention prevented further deaths.
Gunfire tore through Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, on Thursday afternoon after a 16-year-old forced his way inside with a pump-action shotgun and opened fire, striking at least six people.
Three children, ages five, eight, and 11, and a teacher were killed. A seven-year-old and a 54-year-old teacher were taken to a hospital with critical injuries. Officers later found five people dead, including the suspect.
The attack might have claimed more lives if not for a man in the school parking lot who spotted the teen, took fire, called dispatchers, and then ran after him into the building and engaged him before police finished clearing the scene.
A driver in a red Toyota Tacoma saw the teenager approaching the school with a long gun. The man confronted him. The teen fired numerous shots, punching six large holes in the truck and shattering its rear window.
Around 12:59 p.m., the driver called Deschutes County dispatchers. Radio traffic identified him as a father at the school, though police have not officially confirmed that detail. The teen then threw the shotgun over a fence, hopped it, and forced entry by shooting at locked doors.
Daily Mail reporting describes the same community member racing after the gunman and engaging him inside. The suspect was found shot and killed. Bend police have not publicly detailed who fired the fatal round.
Dozens of 911 calls flooded in. Bend police ordered a lockdown within minutes and moved room by room to evacuate students and staff. The school serves roughly 400 to 450 pupils and more than 40 staff members.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek praised the unidentified community member at a press conference and said his actions helped prevent further loss of life.
Kotek said:
"To the community member who heroically intervened...your actions carry a heavy emotional burden and I want you to know my thoughts are with you as well."
She also said:
"My heart is absolutely broken today... this is a horrible day. No parent should have to have this kind of day."
Bend police Chief Mike Krantz called the shooting a terrible tragedy and said investigators were working hard to piece it together. He confirmed officers located five people who had succumbed to their injuries, including the suspect.
Krantz said:
"This is a terrible tragedy and we are working hard to investigate this incident."
Bend-La Pine Schools Superintendent Dr. Steven Cook held back tears as he described the attack and thanked staff who protected children under fire.
Cook said:
"Today, an unthinkable tragedy happened at Silver Rail Elementary School. We are heartbroken. We are horrified. This is the kind of thing you hear about in other places and pray that it never happens here... today it happened to our children, our teachers and our families."
He later added that staff did what no one should ever be asked to do, and urged families to hold one another tight. The district canceled all classes, activities, and athletic events scheduled for Friday.
Worried families rushed to nearby Journey Church, where officials brought out the youngest children first. Officers in tactical gear checked vehicles and secured the area.
Angela Nuchols and her husband, Steven, had dressed their eight-year-old daughter, Charlotte, for picture day that morning. They raced to the school when word of the shooting spread. Angela described the wait as the worst three hours of their lives.
She said the scene was crawling with police officers and that parents faced men in tactical gear with rifles while wondering whether their children were alive.
Mindy Corley, aunt of a fifth-grader, told reporters her nephew was left very scared and wanted to go home.
Mayor Melanie Kebler said hearts across the city were broken and that a school should be a place where children can learn and feel secure. A candlelight vigil formed at Drake Park to honor the dead and the wounded.
Federal agents from the FBI’s Portland office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrived to help. FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau would make every resource local law enforcement needs available.
Authorities would not say Thursday night whether the 16-year-old knew anyone at the school or had ever attended. Motive remained unclear. Police identified the weapon as a pump-action shotgun purchased by the suspect’s mother.
Police spokeswoman Sheila Miller said the school went into lockdown and that officers cleared it room by room. No living suspect remained to arrest. The investigation now turns on how a teenager got that shotgun, how he reached the doors, and exactly how the final confrontation ended.
Four people are dead because a 16-year-old brought a shotgun to an elementary school. More would likely be dead if a private citizen had not run toward the gunfire instead of away from it. That is the difference between speeches about safety and someone willing to act.
