Three children, teacher killed in Oregon school shooting as US gun violence debate reignites

A 16-year-old boy fatally shot three children and a teacher at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon on Thursday afternoon before being killed by a bystander, according to police. The attacker forced his way into the school by shooting at locked doors. The victims were aged five, eight, eleven, and forty-four, with two others hospitalized in critical condition.

The school district's top administrator expressed shock and grief over the senseless tragedy. Police were alerted at 12:59 pm local time to an active shooter incident, receiving the first 911 call from a bystander reporting shots being fired into their car with a long gun. The attacker had not been linked to the school, and no further details were released. Schools in Bend were set to remain closed on Friday for community healing.