At least four people, including three children, have been killed in a shooting at an elementary school in Bend, a city in Oregon in the northwestern United States, according to statements from law enforcement. The attack took place on Thursday at Silver Rail Elementary School, roughly 160km (100 miles) southeast of Portland.
Authorities said the gunman is dead, but it remains unclear whether he is one of the four people included in the initial death toll.
Police response and evacuation at Silver Rail Elementary
Sheila Miller, communications manager for the Bend Police Department, said officers were moving through the building room by room to evacuate everyone inside. She said the event was devastating and described it as something the city never wants to see happen.
Miller said police received a call at 12:59pm local time (19:59 GMT) about a shot fired into a car outside the school and reached the scene within minutes. The suspect was shot and killed shortly afterward. Miller said she did not know whether police or a bystander had stopped the alleged assailant.
The number and condition of those injured were not immediately known.
Federal and state leaders respond to the Bend shooting
Kash Patel, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, said in a social media post that the agency was on the scene assisting local law enforcement. “We will make every resource they need available,” he wrote.
Oregon Governor Tina Kotek said she was closely monitoring the situation. Jeff Merkley, the US senator representing Oregon, also offered condolences, writing on the social media platform X that his thoughts were with the Bend community, the students and the families affected, and that children should not have to fear violence at school.
