Oregon school shooting leaves three children and teacher dead in Bend

A 16-year-old gunman shot and killed three young children and a teacher at an elementary school in Bend, Oregon, on Thursday afternoon before an armed local resident followed him inside and shot him dead.

Two other people — a seven-year-old pupil and a 54-year-old teacher — sustained critical injuries and were taken to St Charles Medical Center in Bend, authorities said.

Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz said the attack took place at Silver Rail Elementary School, located roughly 160 kilometres southeast of Portland. Krantz confirmed that the three children killed were aged five, eight, and 11. Police have notified the families of the victims but have not yet released their names publicly.

How the shooting unfolded

The emergency began just before 1:00 pm local time when dispatchers received a call reporting that a person armed with a long gun was firing at a vehicle near the school grounds. Dozens of emergency calls followed within minutes as the shooter approached the building.

According to police, the teenager forced his way into the school by firing directly at locked exterior doors. The campus was placed on lockdown at 1:01 pm, only two minutes after the initial emergency call.

A community member who saw the gunman enter the building followed him inside and confronted him with a firearm. When police officers arrived on the scene moments later, they discovered the 16-year-old suspect dead from a gunshot wound, preventing any further assault.

Casualties and condition

School evacuation and response

Officers swept the premises to ensure no secondary attackers were present before administering emergency first aid to the wounded. The school serves roughly 450 children from kindergarten through fifth grade and employs around 40 staff members.

Police evacuated students and staff room by room, boarding them onto buses to travel to a reunification centre established at a nearby church. Bend-La Pine Schools Superintendent Steven Cook announced that all schools and district facilities across the area will remain closed on Friday, cancelling all scheduled classes and sporting fixtures.

Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Kash Patel stated that federal agents are assisting local detectives on the scene and providing investigative resources.

Oregon Governor Tina Kotek offered condolences to the victims' relatives and spoke directly of the armed bystander who engaged the shooter, noting that the individual stepped in to halt further loss of life.

Police have identified the suspect as a 16-year-old Bend resident but have not released his identity. Investigators said it remains unclear whether the teenager had ever attended Silver Rail Elementary or what prompted the attack.