(NBC) — A student with a “blank stare” opened fire in the cafeteria of a high school north of Seattle on Friday, wounding at least three people before killing himself, police and witnesses said.
Officials said the gunman was dead and provided no other details on casualties. A hospital official said three patients were in “very critical condition” after the 10:30 a.m. PDT shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School. Another patient is being treated at another hospital with “less serious” injuries.
Students described how an ordinary lunch period erupted in violence with no warning as a freshman silently began shooting in the cafeteria.
“Just all of a sudden I see him stand up, pull something out of his pocket,” Austin Taylor, who had just finished eating lunch at the next table, told NBC affiliate KING.
Taylor said he heard one pop, then four more after that.
“I saw three kids just fall from the table like they were falling from the ground dead,” he said.
As the gunman fiddled with the small pistol, Taylor said, he ran from the cafeteria and into a classroom.
“He had a blank stare,” Taylor said. “He was just staring at the victims as he shot them.
“He was just calm during the whole thing and he was perfectly fine the day before.”
Another student, Alan Perez, said he also saw the gunman pull out his weapon.
“I just dropped my skateboard and ran as fast as I could,” told KING. “I saw he had a little gun in his hand, and saw the flash from the muzzle of the gun.”
After the shooting, someone pulled the fire alarm and students rushed out of classrooms only to be ushered back in by staff as the building was placed on lockdown.
Four patients were taken to Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, where chief medical officer Dr. Joanne Roberts said three were rushed to operating rooms. A fourth was in less serious condition and was transferred to a Seattle hospital.
Tags: shooting
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