Parkland, Florida School Shooting Update: At Least 17 Dead After Shooter Pulls Fire Alarm Then Opens Fire
Update: There are at least 17 people reported dead in the Florida high school shooting, with no word on how many students and teachers this death toll involves. According to the New York Post, the shooter, who was identified as 19-year-old Nicolas Cruz, was a former student at the school and described as a “troubled young man.” He reportedly pulled the fire alarm and as the students exited the classrooms, he opened fire at them in the hallway and stairway. He is in custody and being questioned by authorities tonight.
There are “many deaths” at a Parkland, Florida, high school shooting reports Florida Senator Bill Nelson when speaking with Fox News reporter Peter Doocy. The shooter, who is now reported in custody, went on a shooting spree at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The preliminary estimates of the injured are reported to Fox as somewhere between 20 and 50 people, and it is believed many of the injured are students.
According to the Fox News reporters on the scene, police did have a person of interest in mind after talking to witnesses. He is an unidentified student at that school who was in class earlier today. Police have put out a level 3 for mass casualties, which means more than 20 are injured. This mass casualty level is used to notify hospitals the number of injured in an event such as this.
At this time, many classrooms are on lockdown with worried parents arriving near the high school to find their kids. Students who have been interviewed on Fox are reporting hearing shots. One student reports a girl in his class was shot.
It is a “fluid situation” and much of the information is hearsay right now, warns the Fox reporter before telling the audience that one mother told her a “teacher has passed” after she was wounded trying to protect her students. Parents are reporting receiving text messages from their kids who are hunkered down inside the school.
.@gstephanopoulos asks eyewitness to Florida high school shooting how many shots he heard: "Too many to count." https://t.co/Luvyuv8GaA pic.twitter.com/fmUs4YP0lR
— ABC News (@ABC) February 14, 2018
According to the Sun Sentinel, authorities have advised teachers and students to remain locked down in their classrooms until police reach them. The Sun Sentinel also reports that there are shooting victims, according to the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
Here's what we know about a shooting unfolding at a high school in Parkland, Florida.
– There are reports of victims
– The shooter is still at large, officials say
– The shooting happened just as school was letting out
– Latest updates: https://t.co/rcvcnrze03— CNN (@CNN) February 14, 2018
Live coverage on TV is showing the classrooms being let out by police one at a time. On the screen, you see the kids in a line with their hands in the air being escorted by police. They were told to leave their book bags on the side of a street where police will be going through the items.
#BSO is working a developing incident regarding a report of active shooter located at 5901 Pine Island Rd, Parkland. Here's what we know so far: deputies are responding to reports of a shooting at Stoneman Douglas High. There are reports of victims. PIO will be on scene 3:15pm.
— Broward Sheriff (@browardsheriff) February 14, 2018
According to the reporter, police knew the shooter’s name, his address, and his workplace, but they couldn’t find him at first. At about 3:45 p.m. Wednesday reports from the scene indicate the police now do have that person of interest in custody.
Police have not issued an all-clear, but they are evacuating the school. This shooting is believed to be the actions of one lone shooter who is reportedly a student. It is also reported that the shooting started in one classroom by this suspect and then spread out in the school.
Florida Senator Bill Nelson told Peter Doocy, from Fox News, that there were “many deaths” in this school shooting.Fox News is also reporting this in their news articles online today.
Superintendent of Schools Mr. Runcie reported at a news conference that there are “multiple fatalities.” It is still be reported by numerous sources that more than 20 people are injured. CNN is reporting that there were “a number of people lying on the ground outside the school being treated for injuries and moved to ambulances.”
There are 3,208 students enrolled in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. It is believed that the gunman escaped the school with the rest of the students who ran away from the sounds of gunshots. He was found not far from the school and arrested.
