A student with a 'blank stare' opened fire in the cafeteria of a high school in Washington state on Friday, wounding at least three people before killing himself, police and witnesses said.
Officials said the gunman was dead and provided no other details on casualties. A hospital official said three patients were in 'very critical condition' after the 10:30 a.m. PDT shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School room by room.
Student Austin Taylor said he had just finished eating lunch in cafeteria when a student at the table next to him started shooting.
'Just all of a sudden I see him stand up, pull something out of his pocket,' he told NBC affiliate KING.
Taylor said he heard one pop, then four more after that.
'I saw three kids just fall from the table like they were falling from the ground dead,' he said.
As the gunman fiddled with the small pistol, Taylor said, he ran from the cafeteria and into a classroom.
'He had a blank stare,' Taylor said. 'He was just staring at the victims as he shot them.
'He was just calm during the whole thing and he was perfectly fine the day before.'
Another student, Alan Perez, said he also saw the gunman pulled out his weapons.
'I just dropped my skateboard and ran as fast as I could,' told KING. 'I saw he had a little gun in his hand, and saw the flash from the muzzle of the gun.'
Another student told NBC News that her brother, a freshman, texted her that a student started shooting in the cafeteria about 10:30 a.m. PDT.
'I was in my classroom and someone pulled the fire alarm and we thought it was a fire drill and we ran out and they told us to go back in a classroom,' said the student, Cindy Rodriguez. 'We're scared.'
Marysville Police Cmdr. Robb Lamoureaux said clearing the buildings was a slow process, but investigators were confident there was only one shooter. The motive was not known, he said.
A spokesperson from the FBI's Seattle office said agents were on their way to the scene, about 35 miles north of Seattle, 'to offer assistance to local partners' but provided no details.
The Marysville School District said in a statement: 'The Marysville Pilchuck High School is currently in lock down due to an emergency situation. Police and emergency services have responded. The Marysville School District lock down procedures will remain in effect at Marysville Pilchuck until further notice from law enforcement. We will continue to forward communication in cooperation with law enforcement.'
SOCIAL - Tracy Connor
First published October 24 2014, 11:28 AM
Entities 0 Name: Taylor Count: 4 1 Name: Marysville School District Count: 2 2 Name: Seattle Count: 2 3 Name: KING Count: 1 4 Name: Marysville Pilchuck Count: 1 5 Name: Cindy Rodriguez Count: 1 6 Name: Marysville Pilchuck High School Count: 1 7 Name: Washington Count: 1 8 Name: Marysville Police Count: 1 9 Name: Tracy Connor First Count: 1 10 Name: Robb Lamoureaux Count: 1 11 Name: Alan Perez Count: 1 12 Name: NBC Count: 1 13 Name: FBI Count: 1 Related 0 Url: http://ift.tt/1rswHS0 Title: When Students Take Over the Classroom Description: In an 11th-grade English class at Pittsfield Middle High School in rural New Hampshire, Jenny Wellington's students were gathered in a circle debating Henry David Thoreau's positions on personal responsibility. "Do you think Thoreau really was about 'every man for himself?'" asked one 16-year-old boy.
