Two dead, four injured in CA school shooting
At least two teenagers are dead and several others injured after a gunman opened fire at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, California on Thursday morning.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva:
(SOUNDBITE)(English) LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF, ALEX VILLANUEVA, SAYING:
"There were a total of six victims who were promptly triaged and transported to the local hospitals for treatment. Among those transported, it turned out to be the suspect who is currently in the hospital in grave condition. He's a male, Asian, 16 years of age and a student of the school."
Officials say the suspect's weapon was a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol.
He shot himself, they say, on his birthday.
The shooting - and manhunt that followed - prompted a massive response by law enforcement.
Television footage showed a line of teenagers walking behind armed law enforcement officials - who led the teens away from the scene of the crime. Scores of students gathered in the school field.
Many teenagers were seen embracing their parents and friends outside of the school.
A mother named Eliah told a reporter she was relieved to be reunited with her son:
(SOUNDBITE)(English) EILEAH, SAYING:
“For two hours it was terrifying. Not knowing what was happening. Not hearing from your child - it’s the most terrifying thing in the world. Just being able to hold him again was just the best thing.”
Some students, when they heard the gunshots, hid inside of their classrooms. Others fled.
(SOUNDBITE)(English) UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT, SAYING:
"I ran to the back of the school and through the fence next to the softball field and under the pipe that runs behind the school and into a neighboring street and a person let us in until our parents got there."
The incident marked yet another school shooting in the United States, where repeated mass shootings in recent years have intensified the debate over gun control.
