Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

US Nationwide

19 children, 2 adults killed in Texas school shooting

19 children, 2 adults killed in Texas school shooting, Transatlantic Today

UVALDE, Texas (Transatlantic Today) – A gunman opened fire at a Texas elementary school on Tuesday, killing 19 students in the country’s bloodiest school shooting since the 2012 incident at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. 

According to Texas Department of Public Safety Lt. Chris Olivarez, the 18-year-old shooter killed 19 students and 2 teachers while wearing body armor and firing hundreds of bullets. According to a top Department of Homeland Security officer, the shooter was gunned down by a US Border Patrol agent who was one of many responding to the site. 

The assailant also shot his grandmother, according to Texas Department of Public Safety Sergeant. Erick Estrada, before heading to Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where he was equipped with a gun, overpowering a school administrator. The grandmother had been transported to a hospital and was in serious condition, according to Estrada. 

The woman had died, according to Texas Governor Greg Abbott. 

According to USA TODAY, federal law enforcement authorities estimate the death toll to grow. 

Two responding cops were hit by gunfire, but were not critically hurt, according to Abbott. 

Authorities have not disclosed the reason for the massacre, but have stated that the perpetrator is a local resident. Salvador Ramos was the gunman, according to Abbott. 

At a press conference, Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District Chief of Police Pete Arredondo stated the shooter appeared to be acting alone. 

Uvalde, located 85 miles west of San Antonio, has a population of roughly 16,000 inhabitants. Four years ago, a gunman opened fire at Santa Fe High School in the Houston region, killing ten people. 

President Joe Biden lamented “another massacre” that had placed parents in excruciating sorrow during a press conference on Tuesday night: “To lose a child is like having a piece of your soul ripped away,” he remarked. 

Biden also urged for a renewed effort for gun-control legislation, criticizing the lack of action in the wake of multiple shootings. 

The officer who shot the gunman was allocated to a local squad inside Customs and Border Protection’s special operations division, BORTAC or Border Control Tactical Unit, according to a US homeland security official who commented on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. The officer was hit in the leg while confronting the shooter, and his wounds were treated at a local hospital, according to a DHS official. 

The number of those injured in the attack, in addition to those killed, was not immediately known. Several people were hurt, according to Arredondo. 

Several law enforcement agencies were on the scene Tuesday afternoon, such as  the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. 

Outside the school, broadcast footage showed officers in body armor, FBI agents in jackets, ambulances, and yellow tape encircling the grounds. 

The administration had previously stated that all schools in the district had been closed due to gunfire in the neighborhood. 

Robb Elementary School has just around 600 kids enrolled.

According to David Riedman, principal researcher at the Naval Postgraduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security’s K-12 School Shooting Database, there were 249 school shootings last year, more than any other year since at least 1970, and 137 so far this year. 

Vice President Kamala Harris stated on Tuesday that American leaders must take measures to prevent another school tragedy like the one in Uvalde. 

San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg requested that people join the city in raising flags at half-staff to honor those who have died.

You May Also Like

Europe

Ukrainian officials have spoken of establishing territorial defense units and partisan warfare, but they admit that these resources are insufficient to thwart a Russian...

Features

As Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine, it does so while featuring neo-nazi mercenaries from groups like the Wagner Group and others.

Society

New York (Transatlantic Today) – Is watching bestiality illegal? The topic of bestiality, defined as the act of a human engaging in sexual activity...

Features

The current circumstances involving Russian ambitions to acquire, in the eyes of the international community at least, or, at the very least, preserve as...