Twenty-one people died in a shooting at an elementary school in the US state of Texas, reports Reuters.
An 19-year-old attacker killed XNUMX students and two adults at the elementary school "Rob" in the town of Uvalde.
"The assailant is Salvador Ramos, an 18-year-old resident of Uvalde. He is believed to have exited his vehicle and entered the elementary school with a handgun and may have had an automatic weapon, but that has not yet been confirmed," Abbott said.
Abbott also said that the suspect has died and that it is believed that the police killed him.
The public has been asked to stay away while police investigate the crime scene.
The BBC writes that shootings in primary schools, where students are between the ages of five and 11, are still relatively rare.
Today's attack comes amid a national rise in gun violence.
Abbott identified the gunman as a local 18-year-old, who he said "killed, horribly, incomprehensible, 14 students and teachers."
"He died himself, and it is believed that he was killed by members of the police," he added.
"Two policemen are believed to have been hit by bullets, but not seriously injured."
The gunman may have killed his grandmother at the beginning of the shooting, according to local American media.
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The Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, located about 85 miles (135 km) west of the city of San Antonio, told the BBC that students had been evacuated from the school.
Local hospitals revealed that students from the school were being treated by EMS.
The BBC reports that hospital officials previously said a 66-year-old woman was being treated at a hospital in San Antonio and was in critical condition.
Uvalde Memorial Hospital posted on Facebook that 13 children were transported to the hospital "by ambulance or bus."
"Two individuals were dead on arrival at the hospital," they said earlier on Facebook.
Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin told ABC News in a text message "this is a very bad situation."
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is assisting in the investigation, according to CBS.
The last day of classes for students in the school district was scheduled for Thursday.
Seniors at the local high school in Uvalde, a community of about 16.000, are scheduled to graduate Friday.
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