School shooting in Canada leaves at least 4 dead in northern Saskatchewan
A shooting at a school in an aboriginal community in northern Saskatchewan left at least four people dead and two in critical condition on Friday, according to government and police officials.
A suspect is in custody, according to CBC News.
The official, who received reports from the scene, spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. The grade 7 through 12 La Loche Community School in La Loche has been placed on a lockdown. The community’s population is about 3,000.
“I ran outside the school,” Noel Desjarlais, a Grade 10 student at the school, told CBC News. “There was lots of screaming. There was about six, seven shots before I got outside. I believe there was more shots by the time I did get out.”
Local and national politicians issued statements expressing sympathy for the victims and for their the families.
Brad Wall, the premier of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, confirmed the shooting at the aboriginal community in the province.
“Words cannot express my shock and sorrow at the horrific events today in La Loche. My thoughts and prayers are with all the victims, their families and friends and all the people of the community,” Wall said in a statement.
The school’s Facebook page said it will remain on lockdown until the Royal Canadian Police resolve the matter. It is asking the public to stay away.
Our country’s heart is breaking. We grieve with – and stand with – the people of La Loche today. Full statement: https://t.co/tWQAaewlX1
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) January 23, 2016
Extra doctors and nurses have been sent to treat patients in Keewatin Yatthe Regional Health Authority’s 16-bed hospital, said spokesman Dale West in a statement to Independent News.
“On behalf of all Canadians, Sophie and I offer the families and friends of the victims our deepest condolences on the darkest of days,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in a statement. “Our hearts and prayers are also with those injured in the attack, that they may have a full and speedy recovery. ”
Speaking from Switzerland, Trudeau told reporters at a press conference that police had “everything under control.”
The area’s representative in parliament, who attended the same school, was setting up a constituency office in the community when the shooting occurred.
“We’re fairly shaken up. It’s a sad day,” said Georgina Jolibois, who was mayor of La Loche until she was elected to parliament last fall. “My own nieces and nephews were inside the school.”
Jolibois said she went to the school and spoke with some of her family members, who were unharmed. She wouldn’t reveal details of the shooting, saying she preferred police release the information.
This is the worst school shooting to take place in Canada since 1989, when 14 people were killed by a gunman at Montreal’s Ecole Polytechnique.