Twenty children died today when a heavily armed man invaded a Newtown,
Conn., elementary school, killing his mother and spraying the school
with bullets.
The gunman, identified as Adam Lanza, 20, was killed inside of the school.
Lt. Paul Vance said 18 children died in the school and two more died
later in a hospital. Six adults were also slain, bringing the total to
26.
In addition to the casualties at the school, a body was also found in the shooter's home, officials said.
In the early confusion surrounding the investigation, federal sources
initially identified the suspect as Adam's older brother Ryan Lanza, 24.
LIVE UPDATES: Newtown, Conn., School Shooting
Sources said the shooter was armed with a Glock semi automatic handgun
and a Sig Sauer semi automatic handgun, law enforcement sources told ABC
News. Additionally, .223 caliber shell casings--a rifle caliber--were
also found at the scene. He was wearing a bullet-proof vest when he
opened fire in the elementary school.
Among the dead in the school was the gunman's mother, who was a
kindergarten teacher, sources told ABC News. Many of the students slain
were in class with her when she was killed.
First grade teacher Kaitlin Roig, 29, locked her 14 students in a class
bathroom and listened to "tons of shooting" until police came to help.
"It was horrific," Roig said. "I thought we were going to die."
She said that the terrified kids were saying, "I just want Christmas…I don't want to die. I just want to have Christmas."
A tearful President Obama said there's "not a parent in America who doesn't feel the overwhelming grief that I do."
The president had to pause to compose himself after saying these were
"beautiful little kids between the ages of 5 and 10." As he continued
with his statement, Obama wiped away tears from each eye.
He has ordered flags flown as half staff.
The alert at the school ended when Vance announced, "The shooter is deceased inside the building. The public is not in danger."
The massacre prompted the town of Newtown to lock down all its schools
and draw SWAT teams to the school, authorities said today. Authorities
initially believed that there were two gunmen and were searching cars
around the school, but authorities do not appear to be looking for
another gunman.
It's unclear how many people have been shot, but 27 people, mostly
children, are dead, multiple federal and state sources tell ABC News.
That number could rise, officials said.
CLICK HERE for more photos from the scene.
It is the second worst mass shooting in U.S. history, exceeded only by
the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007 when 32 were killed before the
shooter turned the gun on himself. Today's carnage exceeds the 1999
Columbine High School shooting in which 13 died and 24 were injured.
The Newtown shooting comes three days after masked gunman Jacob Roberts
opened fire in a busy Oregon mall, killing two before turning the gun
on himself.
Today's shooting occurred at the Sandy Hook Elementary School, which
includes 450 students in grades K-4. The town is located about 12 miles
east of Danbury.
State Police received the first 911 call at 9:41 a.m. and immediately
began sending emergency units from the western part of the state.
Initial 911 calls stated that multiple students were trapped in a
classroom, possibly with a gunman, according to a Connecticut State
Police source.
Lt. Paul Vance said that on-duty and off-duty officers swarmed to the
school and quickly checked "every door, every crack, every crevice" in
the building looking for the gunman and evacuating children.
A photo from the scene shows a line of distressed children being led out of the school.
Three patients have been taken to Danbury Hospital, which is also on lockdown, according to the hospital's Facebook page.
"Out of abundance of caution and not because of any direct threat
Danbury Hospital is under lockdown," the statement said. "This allows us
simply to focus on the important work at hand."
Newtown Public School District secretary of superintendent Kathy June
said in a statement that the district's schools were locked down because
of the report of a shooting. "The district is taking preventive
measures by putting all schools in lockdown until we ensure the safety
of all students and staff," she said.
State police sent SWAT team units to Newtown.
All public and private schools in the town were on lockdown.
"We have increased our police presence at all Danbury Public Schools due
to the events in Newtown. Pray for the victims," Newtown Mayor Boughton
tweeted.
State emergency management officials said ambulances and other units were also en route and staging near the school.
A message on the school district website says that all afternoon
kindergarten is cancelled today and there will be no midday bus runs.
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