Texas Elementary School Shooter Dead After Killing 18 Students, 3 Adults And Shot His Grandmother

More than a dozen children are dead after a gunman opened fire at a Texas elementary school Tuesday, Gov. Greg Abbott said during a news conference.

Abbott said the 18-year-old suspect, Salvador Ramos, “shot and killed, horrifically, incomprehensibly, 18 students and killed a teacher.” He added that it’s believed the shooter abandoned his car and entered the school where he opened fire with a handgun, and possibly a rifle, before responding officers shot and killed him.

The governor also said that it is being reported that the gunman shot his own grandmother before entering the school, but Abbott did not have further details about the connection between the two shooting incidents.

“Our job is multifold,” Abbott said. “First, to make we address exactly what happened at this crime scene. Second, to make sure we take that information and do everything that is necessary to ensure that crime scenes like this are not going to be repeated in the future.”

Uvalde Memorial Hospital confirmed two of the deaths and added that the facility received 13 children by ambulance for treatment.

“If you are not an immediate family member, we are asking you to refrain from coming to the hospital at this time,” the hospital wrote on Facebook.

Another hospital, University Health, said it was treating a child and an adult patient from Robb Elementary. The full death toll is not yet clear; police have planned a press conference for Tuesday afternoon.

Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District tweeted shortly before 12:30 p.m. local time that there was an “active shooter” at Robb Elementary, and that the rest of the district was on lockdown.

At 1:06 p.m. Uvalde police announced that a shooter was in police custody.

A reunification site was set up at the local civic center for Robb students and their parents.

A Uvalde Police Department dispatcher said the scene was still active and that no other information was immediately available. School and city officials did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

The Houston branch of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is also providing assistance in the investigation.

Gov. Abbott’s office issued a statement in the wake of the mass shooting:

“Texans across the state are grieving for the victims of this senseless crime and for the community of Uvalde. Cecilia and I mourn this horrific loss and we urge all Texans to come together to show our unwavering support to all who are suffering. We thank the courageous first responders who worked to finally secure Robb Elementary School. I have instructed the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Rangers to work with local law enforcement to fully investigate this crime. The Texas Division of Emergency Management is charged with providing local officials all resources necessary to respond to this tragedy as the State of Texas works to ensure the community has what it needs to heal.”

According to the White House, President Joe Biden is scheduled to deliver remarks on the shooting at 8:15 p.m. ET Tuesday.

Uvalde, home to about 16,000 people is about 85 miles west of San Antonio and 60 miles east of the southern U.S. border with Mexico. Robb Elementary has an enrollment of just under 600 and is located in a mostly residential neighborhood of modest homes.

This is a developing story.