Mass shooting at a school in Texas: a teenager killed 19 children and two adults

Nineteen young children and two adults were killed in a shooting at Robb Elementary School in south Texas on May 24. with the BBC.

Photo: Shutterstock

The shooter opened fire on Robb's elementary school, which has children aged 7 to 10, in the city of Yuwalde before he was killed by law enforcement, officials said. The shooter's motives are not known.

The attack at Robb's elementary school took place just two days before summer break, according to the school calendar, which lists May 26 as the last day. The school was attended by students from grades 2 to 4, and about 600 children attended, reports NPR.

Uvalde, Texas is a community of about 16 people, most of whom are Hispanics, according to the US Census. Uvalde is also known as the hometown of Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey.

“This is yet another tragic proof that we are failing to hold ourselves accountable for the rights that freedom guarantees us,” McConaughey said.

The actor believes that today every American should stand in front of a mirror and ask himself: what do we really value, how can we solve this problem, what small sacrifices can each of us make today in order to save the nation, state and neighbors tomorrow by making them healthier and safer. Matthew McConaughey called what is happening an epidemic that can and should be controlled, reports RBC.

“For those who today let go of their loved ones, not knowing that they are saying goodbye to them forever, no words can compensate for the loss or heal the wound. But if prayers help, then we will continue them,” McConaughey concluded his message.

The shooter was from Uvalde

18-year-old shooter Salvador Ramos attended Yuvalde High School, which was scheduled to graduate on May 27. Law enforcement officials said he acted alone.

The middle school, which is in the same school district as Robb's elementary school where the shooting occurred, has about 1100 students, according to the school district. According to the district, 91% of the district's students are Hispanic and nearly 80% are economically disadvantaged, according to USAToday.

State Senator Roland Gutierrez said on the evening of May 24, after a briefing by the Texas Rangers, that the shooter bought at least two assault rifles shortly after his 18th birthday.

“He had no problem accessing those weapons,” Gutierrez said in an interview.

The 18-year-old suspect was in possession of a handgun, an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and high-capacity magazines, investigators said.

The teenager is suspected of having injured his grandmother before the shooting.

Uvalde Unified Independent School District Police Chief Pete Arredondo said the shooting began on Tuesday, May 24 at 11:32 a.m. local time, and that investigators believe the attacker "acted alone during this heinous crime."

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the shooter, whom he identified as Salvador Ramos, abandoned the vehicle before entering the school to open fire.

The identities of several dead children have already been established.

Family members confirmed the deaths of 10-year-olds Xavier Lopez and Ameri Jo Garza in statements on May 24 in the evening. Angel Garza posted on Facebook that his daughter Ameri was killed.

Xavier Lopez, 10. He was a 4th grader at Robb Elementary. His family confirms he died in today's school shooting. pic.twitter.com/Qp2JatwZ4O

— Dillon Collier (@dilloncollier) May 25, 2022

“My little love is now flying high with angels on top. Please don't take your life for a second for granted. Hug your family. Tell them you love them,” he said.

The two adults who died were teachers, Irma Garcia and Eva Mireles.

According to the school district website, Mrs. Garcia is the mother of four and has been a teacher for 23 years. The same website says that Mireles has been a teacher for 17 years, has a daughter who is in college and loved to run and hike.

Outside the school, screams and sobs were heard from family members who had gathered there and received the terrible news that their children had been killed.

Others were asked to provide DNA samples to help identify some of the young victims.

Just a few blocks from Robb Elementary School, a small vigil was held in memory of the victims and survivors of the attack.

Carla Bohman's voice broke as she told the group about a family friend whose young daughter, a school student, was among the missing. “They don’t know if she’s in surgery or one of the dead, but they know she’s a victim because she’s missing,” Bohman exclaimed. - I can not believe this".

Cheryl Juhasz, a Uvalde resident, cried quietly during prayer. “Such evil cannot be comprehended. Wherever it happens, it’s harder when it comes to our homes,” she said.

School District Superintendent Hal Harrell said the school year ended early because of the shooting.

The Associated Press news agency reports that a US Border Patrol officer who was nearby when the shooting began broke into the school and shot the gunman who was behind the barricade.

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The Border Patrol is a federal agency that guards US ports of entry. In Uvalda, which is less than 120 km from the border with Mexico, there is a border patrol station.

It is reported that two border guards were wounded during a shootout with an armed criminal. One agent was shot in the head, officials said, and both are now in hospital in a stable condition.

The attacker was wearing a bulletproof vest when he committed the crime. Another 18-year-old boy suspected of attacking a grocery store in Buffalo, New York on May 14 was also wearing body armor and armed with a semi-automatic rifle that is commercially available in the US.

The Uvalde Memorial Hospital previously reported on Facebook that 13 children were taken to the hospital by "ambulances or buses." In the early evening of May 24, local hospitals and other organizations called on blood donors to respond to the tragedy. The Herby Ham Community Center also announced that it will be holding a blood draw on May 25 from 9:00 a.m. to 13:00 p.m. local time.

A 66-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl are in critical condition at a hospital in San Antonio, University Health officials said.

A familiar tragedy

This is a deeply shocking tragedy, but in America it is also depressingly familiar. Grief and sympathy are expressed throughout the country. But no one is surprised that this could happen.

There have already been 27 shootings in schools this year alone. Young schoolchildren usually rehearse what to do if an armed criminal enters their class.

It has only been 10 days since ten people died in a mass shooting in New York.

Politicians admit that this problem is almost unique in America, where the number of deaths from firearms is higher than in car accidents. Shooting has become the leading cause of death for children and adolescents. But this is a problem that politics does not seem to be able to solve. Deep-rooted attitudes about gun control have not changed in response to events such as the Yuvalda tragedy.

“Why do we continue to allow this to happen? asked President Biden. “Why are we ready to live with this massacre?”

But there is no sign that Democrats are moving closer to passing tougher gun control legislation.

Some Republicans are already accusing them of using the latest school shooting to cynically pursue their own political goals.

Robb Elementary School will join the list of school shootings along with Sandy Hook and the Parkland shooting. The murder of innocent schoolchildren reignited the gun controversy in America, but did nothing to bring the Americans closer to resolving the issue.

In a speech at the White House, US President Joe Biden called for gun control. “So many dozens of little children witnessed what happened - saw their friends die as if they were on a battlefield, for God's sake,” he said. “They will live with this for the rest of their lives.”

Biden ordered flags to half-mast at the White House and other government buildings following news of the tragedy.

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School shootings have become a recurring emergency in the US, with 26 reported cases last year, according to education trade publication EdWeek.

Active shooter blocking drills are a regular part of the school curriculum, from elementary to high school.

The 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut was the deadliest of these attacks. Twenty of the 26 victims were between the ages of five and six.

Speaking on the floor of the US Senate in Washington, D.C., on May 24, Connecticut Democratic Senator Chris Murphy pleaded with his colleagues to pass gun control legislation.

“These kids are unlucky,” he said. “This only happens in this country.” Nowhere else do little children go to school thinking they might be shot that day.”

But Texas Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican, rejected calls for gun control. He said restricting the rights of "law-abiding citizens ... doesn't work, it's not effective, it doesn't prevent crime."

According to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last month, firearms have overtaken car accidents as the leading cause of death for children and teens in the US in 2020. On May 23, an FBI report found that since the outbreak of the coronavirus in 2020, the number of attacks by "active shooters" has doubled.

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