E-Paper
'They were literally praying': Mayor after kids killed in Minneapolis school shooting
Minneapolis Jacob Frey also said that a family resource centre has been set up to help the families affected.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey expressed deep condolences over the shooting at the Annunciation Church and school that left three people, including two kids and the shooter dead, and injured 17 others, saying that children died in the incident.
"I am extremely sorry," he said. He said that the kids were literally praying when the incident took place. While he did not specify the number of victims, Frey said that "children are dead".
"You cannot put into words the gravity, tragedy, or absolute pain of this moment," Frey said while addressing a press briefing. He added that "this kind of evil act should never happen".
Frey, a Democrat, said in a pointed reference, "Don’t just say this is about ‘thoughts and prayers’ right now. These kids were literally praying."
He noted how this was the first week of school for the children, who had returned to the institution on Monday, adding that they were in church.
“These were Minneapolis families. These were American families, and the amount of pain they are suffering right now is extraordinary,” Frey said.
The mayor also said that a family resource centre has been set up to help the families affected.
2 children, aged 8 and 10, dead
Minneapolis Police chief Brian O'Hara informed that two children are dead and 17 others are injured.
He said that the deceased children were aged 8 and 10 years old, adding that two other kids are in critical condition.
O'Hara further said that of the 17 injured, 14 were children.
Later, Thomas Wyatt, Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Hennepin Healthcare, addressed the media and said that seven children are in critical condition.
He said that the patients were aged between six and 14 years old.
What police said about shooter?
The Minneapolis police chief said that the shooter, in his 20s, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the parking lot.
O'Hara said that the gunman approached on the outside during the mass, on the side of the building, and began firing a rifle through the church windows towards the children, who were sitting in the pews at the mass.
He told reporters that the shooter was armed with a rifle, a shotgun and a pistol.
O'Hara said that authorities are still probing a possible motive behind the shooting, adding that the suspect has yet to be identified.
The police chief said that it is yet to be ascertained whether the shooter legally obtained the firearms or he had any vast criminal record.
