In a school shooting in British Columbia, Canada, eight people were killed last night, including a woman who police say was the attacker, while two other people were found dead in a nearby house.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police also said that more than 25 people were injured, including two people who were airlifted to hospital with life-threatening injuries after a shooting at a high school in Tumbler Ridge.
Tumbler Ridge, a town of about 2.400 people, is located more than 1.000 kilometers north of Vancouver near the border with the province of Alberta. According to the government website, Tumbler Ridge High School has 175 students, in grades seven to 12.
Tumbler Ridge Mayor Daryl Krakovka said the entire community is grieving. He said it was terrible to hear how many people had died in the community of 2.700, which he called "a big family."
British Columbia Premier David Abbey told reporters that police arrived at the school within two minutes.
They found seven dead, the police department said, including the suspect who apparently committed suicide. An eighth person died on the way to the hospital, and two more people were found dead in a house that authorities said was likely connected to the attack.
Police Chief Ken Floyd told reporters that investigators had identified a female suspect in the attack, but did not release her name, and said her motive was unclear. The police report described the shooting as a "female wearing a dress and brown hair."
Floyd said police are still investigating how the victims are connected to the attacker.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement on social media that he was shocked by the attack in Tumbler Ridge.
"I join Canadians in mourning the lives of those whose lives were irrevocably changed today and in gratitude for the courage and selflessness of the police officers who risked their lives to protect their fellow citizens," Carney wrote.
Carney's office said he had canceled a planned trip to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he was to announce a long-awaited defense industry strategy, and to Munich, Germany, for the Munich Security Conference.
The Canadian government has responded to previous mass shootings with gun control measures, including recently expanded bans on all rifles considered assault weapons.
Yesterday's shooting was the deadliest in Canada since 2020, when a gunman killed 13 people in Nova Scotia. A fire that followed the attack killed nine more people.
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