Four killed in school shooting in US state of Oregon

Alex Ritzen (0:00)

This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service.

I'm Alex Ritzen, and in the early hours of Friday the 16th of October, these are our main stories. At least three children have been killed in a school shooting in the US state of Oregon. Britain's defence secretary says he's been reassured by the US that Starlink satellite services used by Ukraine's military have been restored, and Houthi rebels strike at the heart of Yemen's government, the presidential palace in Aden. Also in this podcast, Venezuela's ousted president, Nicolas Maduro, pleads not guilty to conspiracy to torture in a New York court. And?

Diana Shinnefott (0:43)

Yesterday, we published a new line on a new garbage truck, and there were several drivers who were there to enjoy the festive revelation.

Alex Ritzen (0:51)

A Dutch city gets international recognition for its tradition of printing poetry on rubbish trucks.

People in the US are absorbing the news of another school shooting. An attacker opened fire at a primary school in the city of Bend in the state of Oregon, killing three children and a teacher. The youngest child was just five years old. The gunman, a 16-year-old, was shot dead by a member of the public. The Bend Chief of Police, Mike Krantz, was asked how the attacker got into the classrooms.

Mike Krantz (1:25)

From what the initial investigation is showing, the shooter had forced their way into the school by shooting at locked doors.

Alex Ritzen (1:34)

The local school's superintendent, Steve Cook, called it an unthinkable tragedy.

Steve Cook (1:40)

We are heartbroken, we are horrified. This is the kind of thing you hear about in other places and pray that it never happens here, and it has happened here.

Today, it happened to our children, to our teachers, and to our families. To the families that have had loss tonight, we're with you and we will stay with you. To our staff who helped our students and protected our kids today, we thank you. You did what no one should ever be asked to do. I am so grateful, beyond words, for your efforts.

Alex Ritzen (2:17)

Schools Superintendent Steve Cook. Our North America correspondent, Shima Khalil, told us what else the authorities had been saying.

Shima Khalil (2:26)

Police have now confirmed that the suspect was a 16-year-old from Bent, from the community. They also say that everyone at the school has been evacuated, taken by bus to a nearby church where the families are still being reunited. We do not know who killed the gunman. They also did not say who the gunman was, what his relationship with the school is or was. We do know that the first call was received one minute before one o'clock in the afternoon local time, and that was a person in a vehicle calling 911, reporting being shot at multiple times by someone carrying a long gun. This is how they described the gun. They did not elaborate on what kind of gun, how many bullets were fired, but as you've heard there that the gunman then went on to the inside the school, shooting through locked doors and opening fire. We then understand that someone followed him into the school, pursued him, and shot him. As it stands, three children aged five, eight, 11, and a teacher were killed at Silver Rail Elementary School.

We know that a seven-year-old child and a teacher are critically injured and have been taken to a local hospital.

We are expecting another media conference anticipated tomorrow afternoon local time. But we do know that unsurprisingly, all school activities have been suspended. There's going to be a vigil, there are going to be support groups for the community. But we also know that the Bend Police are leading this investigation supported by FBI forces, and that there's going to be a large police presence in the school for several days. And you could hear it in the voice of the governor, the mayor, the superintendent, how shocked and emotional they are. Because they always say, you do not expect this to happen to you, and then it happens to you. It happens in your community. The number of times we've heard that from different officials in different communities. This is the 100, 149th shooting in a school shooting in the United States so far, just this year.

Alex Ritzen (4:39)

Yeah, you don't expect it to happen to you. You particularly don't expect it to happen in a primary school.

Shima Khalil (4:45)

That's right. And I think the fact that this is an elementary school is going to weigh heavy. These are tiny children.

And, you know, from the casualty so far, a five-year-old, an eight-year-old, an 11-year-old killed, a seven-year-old critically injured. And you could also hear it from shocked parents' voices that have spoken to local media and our partners, CBS. The fact that they say, we just don't believe that this is happening. And of course, many questions are going to be asked, why it happened, how this 16-year-old got their hands on a long gun, what kind of long gun, what is the motive. But yet again, prepare for the two words, gun control, prepare for the political argument around all of this. The question is, why does this keep happening again? And it has a lot to do with how people can get their hands on a gun in the United States, how vulnerable schools are, how young school children are, especially as in this case, young school children.