Knoxville police said they sent their men to Austin-East when they were informed there was a gunman inside the high school.
Policemen shot dead a student in High School in Knoxville , in the state Tennessee of USA when submitted as opened fire on them in toilet, injuring one. The incident, which took place around 15:15 (local time) at Magnet High School in Austin-East , east of Knoxville , added to the long series of bloody gun attacks in the United States since mid-March.
The injured police officer – who was hit by a bullet in the thigh – is in critical condition after undergoing surgery at the University of Tennessee Medical Center , according to Knoxville police officers . He is expected to survive. “He has his senses and his morale is good (…). It will be OK. I thanked him for putting his life in danger to protect students and school staff. “He said he would rather be hurt than anyone else,” Knoxville Mayor India Kincannon told CBS News.
Knoxville police said they sent their men to Austin-East when they were informed there was a gunman inside the high school. The suspect was located in a toilet. “When the police entered the area, the suspect allegedly opened fire, injuring a police officer. His death was confirmed on the spot (…). “He was recognized as a student at Austin-East,” said David Raus, director of the Tennessee Research Bureau , during a news conference.
Knoxville Police Chief Yves Thomas, speaking at the same press conference, described the incident as “creepy”. Police initially reported “several” victims at a high school in the Tennessee city of about 180,000.
A lockdown was imposed at a high school in Austin-East after the incident. The troubled parents who ran to the school were instructed to pick up their children at the back exit. A reunion center for students and parents was later set up at a nearby baseball court.
A mother who was expecting her daughter said she was relieved when she received a text message from the girl assuring her that she was safe. Federal agents in charge of weapons and explosives (US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, ATF) are involved in the investigation, she said.
The Austin-East community has been rocked by several gun incidents this year. Four high school students have been killed in recent months in such incidents, according to US media .
The Bill Lee , the governor of Tennessee, where before only a few days signed a law that will allow citizens holding legal weapons to bear without authorization from July on public countries, called “tragic” and “very difficult” yesterday’s incident .
School rifles have become a scourge in the United States since the April 1999 massacre in Columbine, Colorado. Since mid-March, mass shootings in the United States have followed one another – in Atlanta, Georgia (8 dead), in Boulder, Colorado (10 dead), in Orange , California (4 dead, including a 9-year-old boy). Last week, a gunman opened fire inside a furniture store he worked for in Texas, killing one person and injuring six others before he was arrested.
Last week, staging the “epidemic” of gun violence, President Joe Biden unveiled targeted measures to prevent their further spread.
