At least two students are in critical condition after a shooting at Evergreen High School in Evergreen, Colorado, where more than 100 law enforcement officers cleared the school “room by room” as it was on lockdown, officials said.
The suspect, a minor who is believed to be a student at the high school, was also injured and remains in critical condition at a local hospital, said Jacki Kelley, public information officer for the sheriff’s department, News.Az reports, citing CNN.
Kelley could not confirm how the suspect was shot, but said it’s not believed law enforcement fired any rounds. Authorities are working to obtain a search warrant for the suspect’s home, she said.
The first 911 call reporting an active shooter came in at 12:24 p.m. local time, said Kelley. The shooting took place on school grounds outside of the building, but authorities are still working to identify any crime scenes inside the school, she said.
The two victims with gunshot wounds and the suspected shooter are being treated at nearby St. Anthony’s Hospital and officials do not believe there are any additional people injured, hospital CEO Kevin Cullinan said at a news briefing.
The tragedy marks the 47th shooting that took place at a school in the United States so far this year — 24 of which were on college campuses and 23 on K-12 school grounds. Colorado’s shooting took place less than an hour after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot at an event at Utah Valley University.
Many students who witnessed anything related to the shooting will be interviewed by investigators as they piece together what happened at the school, which has over 900 students, Kelley said.
“This is the scariest thing you could ever think that could happen and these parents were really frightened and so were the kids,” said Kelley. “And I know we always say not again, and here we are.”
Jefferson County Public Schools urged people to stay away from the area as law enforcement responds.
