At least 19 children and two teachers were killed after gunmen shot at an elementary school in Walton, Texas.
It was the deadliest hunt in state school history.
Until noon On Tuesday, Wawdale Police responded to reports of shootings at Robbie Elementary School, which teaches students in second and fourth grades. Uvalde is located approximately 80 miles west of San Antonio, located on the subway and on the U.S. border with Mexico. It has a large Mexican-American population.
Police said the killer, an 18-year-old man wearing armor, crashed into his vehicle outside the school before entering the building and opened fire. He was killed by agents interviewed, Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) said at a news conference.
Texas state police identified the alleged attacker as Salvador Ramos, who was outside the area.
The governor said the killer shot his grandmother before she entered the school. A Texas court reported he was still alive after being transferred to a regional hospital.
“He was shot and killed, in a terrible, incomprehensible way,” Abbott said in a briefing.
So far it is not yet known what he will do after leaving the post.
Parents gathered in front of the civic center who knew nothing about their children while waiting for the news. Some family members were removed for DNA tests to help authorities identify people injured or killed in the attack.
Throughout the night, groups of loved ones wept when investigators told them their children were dead.
A teacher killed in the attack was identified by her family as Eva Mireles, who taught fourth grade at Robb Elementary. Her aunt, Lydia Martinez Delgado, told The New York Times that Mireles died while trying to protect the students.
She was a mother in her forties and “loved her dearly,” Delgado told the newspaper. “Happy parties.”
Ulwalde School District Police Chief Pete Arendo said officers are still monitoring the scene, adding that authorities are not looking for other people or suspects in the case.
It was the deadliest school massacre since the Sandy Hook Elementary School attack in 2012 and the second deadliest K-12 campus shooting in modern U.S. history.
Hal Harel, supervisor of the Ulvalede school district, said the community was struggling with a “tragic and pointless incident”. The district immediately ended the school year and canceled all upcoming events and activities for students.
“My heart is sinking now,” Harel said at a news conference. “We are a small community and we will need your prayers to address this problem.”
The woman, whose granddaughter attends Rob Elementary, said authorities have asked parents and family members to provide a description of what their children were wearing when they entered school on Tuesday. morning. Her grandson disappeared after the attack.
“They asked for a photo, a description of what they were wearing this morning … It’s hard,” the woman said at the WFAA branch, ABC, Dallas. “I’m just praying that my little one is okay. I will tell myself that he is fine ”.
The nation’s leading Democrats have called for immediate gun control action after the massacre, even if it is difficult to do so in the 50-50 Senate. President Joe Biden ordered that flags remain in the White House and federal buildings until Saturday.
“Why are we ready to live in this massacre?” Why do we allow this? Where is our backbone in the name of God? “The president made the announcement when he left the White House on Tuesday night.” It’s time to act. It’s time for those who obstruct, postpone or block common sense gun laws. let me tell you – we will never forget. We still have a lot to do, we need to do more “.
Biden added that he was “tired” of lawmakers’ inertia on the issue and asked, “When will we be in God’s name with the arms lobby?”
“Our hearts continue to be broken,” Vice President Kamala Harris said. “That’s enough. As a nation, we must have the courage to act and understand the connection between what creates a rational and prudent public policy so that such things do not happen again.”
Many Republicans have rejected such appeals, including Texas Senator Ted Cruz (R), who advocates for more military protections on school campuses.
“You know, when there is such a killer, you see politicians trying to get him political, you see democracies and a lot of people in the media whose solution is to try to limit the constitutional rights of law -abiding citizens. Cruz said Tuesday. “It doesn’t work. It’s not effective. It won’t stop crime.”
Texas Senator Roland Gutierrez (D), who represents the area, said he plans to provide resources, including advice for pain counselors, which he describes as a small town.
“A very hardworking community, rural by nature,” Gutierrez told HuffPost. “It’s a beautiful town, a small town in Texas. I just can’t imagine … I’m shocked at these parents, at those families and at the whole community. I pity them. “
Source: Huffpost
