A shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis left two children dead as they prayed and injured 17 other people, 14 of them kids, on Wednesday, during the very first week of the new academic session, according to authorities and hospital officials. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz described the violence as “horrific”.
Three people have died while 20 are injured, a US Justice Department official said. The shooter was among those killed, the official told news agency Reuters.
The Minneapolis city government confirmed that the shooter was “contained” following the incident and assured that there was no longer any “active threat” to residents.
Governor Walz said in a post on X that he had been updated on the situation. “I’m praying for our kids and teachers whose first week of school was marred by this horrific act of violence,” he wrote.
US President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social, “I have been fully briefed on the tragic shooting in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The FBI quickly responded and they are on the scene. The White House will continue to monitor this terrible situation. Please join me in praying for everyone involved!”
Children treated in trauma centres
Children’s Minnesota, a major paediatric trauma hospital, reported that five children had been admitted for medical attention. Hennepin Healthcare, which runs the state’s largest emergency department, stated it was also caring for patients linked to the shooting, AP reported.
As law enforcement, including the FBI and other federal agencies, secured the scene and ambulances transported the wounded, President Donald Trump noted in a Truth Social post that he had been briefed on the “tragic shooting” and said the White House would continue monitoring the developments.
Families directed to reunification zone
Authorities evacuated the school, and families were instructed to gather at a designated “reunification zone” to collect their children. Annunciation Catholic School, founded in 1923 and catering to pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, had been scheduled to hold an all-school Mass at 8:15 a.m. on Wednesday, as listed on its website. The academic year had only commenced on Monday.
Recent social media updates from the school showed students engaged in back-to-school activities — smiling for photos, showcasing summer art, playing together and enjoying ice pops.
At a Democratic officials’ meeting elsewhere in Minneapolis, Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin referred to the incident, noting that there was an “unknown amount of victims.”
Minneapolis reels from consecutive shootings
The school tragedy came amid a spate of shootings in Minneapolis within a 24-hour span. On Tuesday afternoon, gunfire outside a city high school killed one person and left six others injured. Hours later, two more individuals were killed in separate incidents.
Wednesday’s school shooting also followed a wave of hoax emergency calls about alleged shootings on more than a dozen U.S. college campuses. These false alarms, sometimes accompanied by recorded gunfire sounds, prompted universities to issue urgent alerts advising students to “run, hide, fight,” spreading fear at the start of the academic year.
