A 14-year-old boy allegedly opened fire at a Georgia high school on Wednesday, killing two students and two teachers while injuring nine other people. This incident marks the first mass shooting at a school in the United States since the beginning of the academic year — but the 23rd such incident in 2024.
Here is all to know about the victims, suspect and shooting.
What happened in Georgia and when?
- Lyela Sayarath, 16, a student at the school, told CNN that she was sitting next to the suspected attacker before the shooting took place.
- The suspected shooter left an algebra class at about 9:45am (13:45 GMT). Later, as the class was nearing its end, he returned. A girl attempted to open the door but saw the gun and didn’t open it. She reported that the shooter then went to the classroom next door and began shooting.
- Officers first received reports of a shooting at the school at about 10:20am local time (14:20 GMT).
- After the shooting took place, all schools in the district were placed in lockdown, and police were sent out to all district high schools.
- A report by CNN said that earlier in the morning, Apalachee High School received a phone threat warning of shootings at five schools, with Apalachee being identified as the first target.
3. There was a call to another local high school this morning with a reported threat. Police responded, investigated, and determined there was no threat.
(3/3)
— GA Bureau of Investigation (@GBI_GA) September 5, 2024
Where did the shooting take place?
- Apalachee High School is located in the city of Winder, Georgia. It is an hour outside of Atlanta, the state’s largest city and capital.
- The school has nearly 1,900 students enrolled and is one of three high schools in the Barrow County School System.
- In the state of Georgia, individuals must be 18 or older to purchase handguns. Minors also cannot possess handguns. In 2019, Georgia ranked 15th in firearm-related deaths in the…
Source from www.aljazeera.com