A student in Marysville-Pilchuck High School opened fire at the school’s cafeteria, killing one other person, and wounding four students, three with critical head wounds. The shooter also died, but officials have not released the shooter’s identity.
Jordan Luton, a witness of the shooting, told CNN that the shooter “came up from behind … and fired about six bullets into the backs of [the students].”
“They were his friends, so it wasn’t just random,” he added.
The three with the critical head wounds have been taken to Providence Regional Medical Center, at which they are undergoing surgery, and the fourth individual has been taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
An official who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the shooter killed himself, and it has been confirmed that there was only one shooter in the incident.
Once the shooting began, witnesses say that the fire alarm was turned on, and people scattered everywhere. Students were loaded into buses for evacuation and taken to a church near the school, at which parents were waiting to reunite with their children, and to wait until the situation became stabilized. The local police were notified when a student within the school called 911 at around 10:45 AM.
Some of the student witnesses report that there may have been vengeful and/or emotional intentions behind the shooter’s actions. Nathan Heckerdorf, a student, told ABC that the shooter had previously gotten into a fight “over racial slurs.” Other witnesses say that he was a “well-liked freshman and member of the school’s wrestling and football teams.” Another witness said that though he was popular, he was subject to bullying recently.
