10 are dead at Umpqua Community College in southern Oregon after a gunman began shooting at about 10:30 a.m. Thursday.
Though early reports were not clear on whether the assailant (UPDATE: Named as Chris Harper Mercer) was dead or in custody, USA Today now confirms that he was killed by police, and that there was only one shooter, a 20-year-old male.
At least 20 more were reportedly injured, with 13 12 confirmed admitted to local hospitals.
Four guns were recovered from the scene, according to CNN, which also referenced “social network postings” that may be of interest.
This is possibly in reference to this archived posting from 4chan, where an anonymous user warns others to stay away from school today in the Pacific Northwest.
The night before the attack, the shooter appears to have had a conversation with others online about his intentions, that source said.
“We arrived to find multiple patients in multiple classrooms. Law enforcement was on scene and had the shooter neutralized,” Douglas County Fire Marshal Ray Shoufler told CNN.
He said that two patients died while being transported to a hospital.
The shooting appears to have started in one building before the gunman moved to the school’s science building, the source told CNN. Those killed and wounded were found in at least two classrooms.
According to The Oregonian, officers from Douglas County Sheriff’s Office responded around 10:40 a.m. to reports of the shootings.
Early reports from the chaotic scene claimed as many as 15 people had been killed by the gunman.
The district tweeted at about 11:30 a.m. that no further emergency response was needed, and that all patients had been transported to hospital.
The school, north of Roseburg, Oregon, has about 3,000 full-time students.
Some eyewitnesses were interviewed by reporters from the local NRToday news site:
Kortney Moore, 18, from Rogue River, was in her Writing 115 class in Snyder Hall when one shot came through a window. She saw her teacher get shot in the head. The shooter was inside at that point, and he told people to get on the ground. The shooter was asking people to stand up and state their religion and then started firing away, Moore said
Brady Winder, 23, of Portland, said he was in the room next door when he heard a loud thud that didn’t sound like a gunshot. He then heard a percussion of gunshots and the students all fled out the front door.
Hannah Miles was in a class room next door to the shooting in Snyder Hall. Miles said they heard a sound next door that sounded like a yardstick slapping on a chalkboard. Then they heard the noise again. A teacher went to see if everything was all right, at which point it went off repeatedly and someone said everybody get out now. They got out as quickly as possible. They left everything behind.