Shooting at Florida High School; 17 Confirmed Dead

 

6:50 PM UPDATE: PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — A Florida sheriff says that 12 of the 17 confirmed deaths in Wednesday’s shooting attack on a high school were found in the school.

Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel says the attack began outside the school Wednesday afternoon.

He told reporters that authorities subsequently found 12 people dead in the building and two more dead just outside the school and one more in a nearby street. Israel says two other people died later under medical treatment.

Israel says the suspect, a 19-year-old former student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, is in custody. He says the male suspect was checked out at a hospital after his arrest and is now being held at a secure location in a public building.

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6:30 PM UPDATE: PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — A sheriff says 17 people have died in the shooting attack on a South Florida high school.

Sheriff Scott Israel of Broward County says the 19-year-old suspect is in custody and that investigators are beginning to “dissect” what happened in the attack Wednesday at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

He says the suspect, a former student, was previously expelled for disciplinary reasons.

Israel says the man had at least one rifle and multiple magazines.

He says most of the fatalities were inside the building though some were found fatally shot outside.

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6:27 PM UPDATE: PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) – Sheriff: 17 dead in shooting at high school in South Florida.

 

 

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5:30 PM UPDATE: PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — A federal official has identified the Florida school shooting suspect as Nikolaus Cruz.

The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. The official says he had been briefed on the investigation into the shooting at the South Florida high school, but was not authorized to discuss it publicly.

Authorities in Florida say the shooter opened fire at the school Wednesday afternoon, killing “numerous” people. The shooting sent frightened students running out into the streets and SWAT team members swarming the building.

Authorities later announced that they had taken a former student, about 18 years old, into custody after locating him off the school grounds.

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5:28 PM UPDATE: PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) – US official: Florida school shooter identified as Nikolaus Cruz .

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5:00 PM UPDATE: PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel says the shooting suspect is an 18-year-old former student at the South Florida school where the shooting erupted.

He says the teen was arrested without incident after he was located off the school grounds in a nearby community. He didn’t give details of when the suspect had attended the school. But the sheriff says the suspect wasn’t currently enrolled.

“I don’t know why he left,” Israel said, briefing reporters Wednesday afternoon.

He also says the shooter was outside and inside the school at points during the attack. He didn’t elaborate.

The sheriff says several SWAT teams have gone in during the afternoon and are clearing every building at the Parkland high school complex to ensure no other threat remains.

He also says the FBI has stepped in and will begin processing what he describes as “horrific scene.”

Said the sheriff: “This is a terrible day … This is catastrophic.”

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4:15 PM UPDATE: PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — The White House has canceled its daily press briefing after a Florida high school shooting that sent students rushing into the streets.

President Donald Trump has spoken with Florida Gov. Rick Scott about the shooting. He says in a tweet that the White House is “working closely with law enforcement on the terrible Florida school shooting.”

He earlier tweeted his condolences to the families of the victims.

Spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders says Trump has offered Florida federal assistance, if needed. The homeland security secretary has also been in touch with state and local officials.

Sanders says, “We continue to keep the victims, and their friends and family, in our thoughts and prayers.”

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3:55 PM UPDATE: PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — The shooting at a South Florida high school sent students rushing into the streets as SWAT team members swarmed in and locked down the building. Police were warning that the shooter was still at large even as ambulances converged on the scene and emergency workers appeared to be treating those possibly wounded.

Aerial television news footage showed police in olive fatigues, with weapons drawn, entering the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. Then dozens of students could be seen frantically running and others quickly walking out. A police officer waved the students on, urging them to quickly evacuate the school.

Some students exited the building in single-file rows with hands raised overhead to show they carried no weapons. Others held onto other students as they made their way out past helmeted police in camouflage with weapons drawn.

Emergency medical personnel pulled stretchers from the backs of ambulances as police cars surrounded the parking lot. At least one person was seen being wheeled to the ambulance on a gurney. It wasn’t immediately clear how many people were wounded.

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PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) – Authorities say they’re responding to a shooting at a Florida high school and the school has been locked down.

The Broward Sheriff’s Office has told news outlets the shooting happened Wednesday afternoon at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

 


It wasn’t immediately clear how many people were wounded.

Coral Springs Police said on their Twitter account Wednesday that the school is locked down and that students and teachers inside should remain barricaded until police reach them.

 


TV footage showed at least one person being wheeled to an ambulance on a gurney while emergency workers appeared to be helping others on the sidewalk. The news broadcasts also showed students running across the street.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. (Photo: CNN/WSVN)

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