Yet another mass shooting occurred in the United States, a 19-year-old former student gunned down 17 people at least as per reports. It was including students and staff and he injured 15 in a high school in Florida. The name of the boy is Nikolas Cruz, who has expelled a year ago for unspecified disciplinary problems. Investigators said he carried an AR-15, a semi-automatic rifle used in several mass shootings, and multiple magazines.
Sheriff Scott Israel said, “This is catastrophic… There really are no words.” The shooting took place in Parkland city at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. He set off the fire alarm to draw students into the hallway and waited for them at the entrance with the semi-automatic gun. He came wearing a gas mask and was carrying smoke grenades.
A student Alex said, “People were halfway down the stairwell, it just stopped, the alarm stopped. And we heard gunshots coming from the first floor, the second floor and people were running upstairs. We all got upstairs and into our classroom. As (my teacher) was closing the door he was actually shot and killed right there. The door was left open the whole time so as (the shooter) walked by, the door was open. He could have walked in at any time.”
Most of the victims almost 12 of them were shot inside the school building. Two were killed outside and the last one further away as the assailant tried to flee. The gunman was arrested not too far from the school and was said to be cooperating with investigators.
Robert Runcie, superintendent of Broward County schools said, “It’s a day that you pray every day when you get up that you will never have to see. It is in front of us. I ask the community for prayers and their support for the children and their families.”
Teacher Jim Gard said, “We received no warning. Potentially there could have been signs out there. But we didn’t have any warning or phone calls or threats that were made.We were told last year that he wasn’t allowed on campus with a backpack on him. There were problems with him last year threatening students, and I guess he was asked to leave the campus.”
In 2017, 346 incidents were reported against 383 a year before, according to gun-violence trackers, who also said 2018 has already seen 17 school shootings.
A defender of gun rights tweeted, “My prayers and condolences to the families of the victims of the terrible Florida shooting. No child, teacher or anyone else should ever feel unsafe in an American school.”
