Gunman believed to be a 14-year-old in Georgia school shooting that left at least 4 dead, source says

By John Miller, Nick Valencia, Shawn Nottingham, Dakin Andone and Isabel Rosales, CNN

Winder, Georgia (CNN) — At least four people were killed and nine others injured Wednesday morning as a gunman sent students and faculty at a Winder, Georgia, high school desperately scurrying for cover, schools across the county into lockdown and parents scrambling for information.

Four people were killed in the shooting inside Apalachee High School, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Nine others were transported to hospitals with injuries.

Law enforcement sources said earlier approximately 30 people were injured in the shooting. It was unclear how many of those injuries are from gunshot wounds; the information is preliminary and subject to change.

The suspected gunman is believed to be a 14-year-old boy, a law enforcement source told CNN.

The source said it is not yet known whether the teen attended that school.

The suspect is alive and in custody, the GBI said in a post on X.

The high school had received an earlier phone threat, multiple law enforcement officials told CNN.

The phone call Wednesday morning warned there would be shootings at five schools, and that Apalachee would be the first.

It is not known who placed the call. Officials tell CNN they are investigating the call and where it originated.

The US has suffered at least 385 mass shootings so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which, like CNN, defines mass shootings as those in which four or more victims are shot. That’s an average of more than 1.5 mass shootings every day.

Follow live updates: Police respond to reported shooting at Georgia high school

Student texted mom: ‘I’m scared’

Erin Clark was at work Wednesday morning when she got a series of text messages from her son, a senior, who was attending class at Apalachee High School.

“School shooting.”

“I’m scared,” he wrote.

“pls” “i’m not joking,” the flurry of messages said.

“I’m leaving work,” Clark replied. “I love you,” her son, Ethan Haney, 17, wrote back.

“Love you too baby,” his mom texted before racing to the high school.

Clark told CNN her son heard eight or nine gunshots before he closed his classroom door and, with the help of another classmate, moved chairs and tables to block the door.

Clark told CNN she was “absolutely terrified” when she read her son’s messages. “Just kept praying he’d stay safe,” she said. She said she was “in complete shock that this was actually happening.”

Schools in county went into lockdown

As emergency responders came from several counties, video from outside the school showed at least five ambulances and a large law enforcement presence at the campus, and at least one medical helicopter could be seen airlifting a patient from the scene.

At the football field, where authorities had students gather, people lowered their heads and formed a prayer circle in the end zone, standing on the letters for “Apalachee” as their classmates milled around the field.

All schools in the Barrow County School System, which includes the high school, were placed on lockdown and police were sent out of an abundance of caution to all district high schools, according to the sources, but there are no reports of secondary incidents or scenes.

Some of the critically injured were removed by helicopter, and additional helicopters are on standby.

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith, in a brief news conference at the scene, said authorities received the call about an active shooter around 9:30 a.m. He would not share the number of casualties.

Smith asked for patience, saying the investigation remains “very, very fluid.” He hopes to provide another update around 4 p.m. ET, he said.

Atlanta trauma center, other hospitals take patients

Grady Health System – a Level 1 trauma center in Atlanta, about an hour drive from Winder – received one gunshot wound victim from the incident who was transported by helicopter, a hospital spokesperson told CNN.

A source with knowledge of the situation, who is not authorized to speak to the media, told CNN that Piedmont Athens Regional Hospital in North Georgia received two victims from the shooting. The source said one victim is an adult with a gunshot wound to the stomach currently in surgery and that another is a minor with unspecified injuries.

The Barrow County School System told CNN students have been cleared to leave and parents have been notified to pick them up. Transportation will be provided to students who need it, the district said.

Georgia governor sends prayers and says he can send resources

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has directed all available state resources to assist at the scene, he said in a statement on social media. The governor urged “all Georgians to join my family in praying for the safety of those in our classrooms, both in Barrow County and across the state.”

President Joe Biden has been briefed on the incident, the White House said, offering federal support to state and local officials.

“His administration will continue coordinating with federal, state, and local officials as we receive more information,” the White House said in a statement.

Attorney General Merrick Garland similarly said the US Department of Justice “stands ready” to support the community after the shooting.

“We are still gathering information, but the FBI and ATF are on the scene, working with state, local and federal partners,” Garland said at a meeting of the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force.

“I am devastated for the families that have been affected by this terrible tragedy,” Garland added. “The Justice Department stands ready to provide any resources or support that the Winder community needs in the days ahead.”

Winder had a population of about 18,338 as of the 2020 census, according to the US Census Bureau. The Barrow County School System is the 24th largest school district in the state, per the district’s website. It serves about 15,340 students, 1,932 of whom are enrolled at Apalachee High School.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

CNN’s Isabel Rosales reported from Winder, while Nick Valencia and Shawn Nottingham reported from Atlanta. CNN’s John Miller and Dakin Andone reported from New York. Steve Almasy, Josh Campbell, Rebekah Riess, Devan Cole, Hannah Rabinowitz and Mark Morales contributed to this report.

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