US Shooting Spree: Four Killed at Oregon Elementary School; Teenage Gunman Dies

By Staff, Agencies

A 16-year-old gunman killed three students and a teacher at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, on Thursday before being shot dead by a bystander, police said.

Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz identified the suspected shooter as a 16-year-old resident of the city during a news conference. He declined to disclose the teenager’s name or clarify whether he had any connection to the school or its students.

The three children killed in the attack were aged five, eight and 11. A seven-year-old child and a 54-year-old teacher were also hospitalized in critical condition.

According to Krantz, the gunman was shot by a community member who witnessed him entering the school and pursued him inside before confronting him.

Following the shooting, the school was placed under lockdown, while the Bend Police Department urged the public to stay away from the area as emergency services responded to the incident.

The Source Weekly reported that parents had received alerts informing them that nearby schools, including Caldera High School and Jewell Elementary School, had also been placed under lockdown following a police alert at approximately 1:20 p.m. on Thursday. The precautionary lockdowns were lifted around 40 minutes later.

Footage from the scene showed multiple police vehicles and ambulances gathered outside the school as authorities responded to the shooting.

FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed that the bureau’s local office was assisting investigators with the case, pledging that federal authorities would provide the necessary support.

“We will make every resource they need available,” Patel wrote on X.

Bend Mayor Melanie Kebler described the incident as a devastating day for the local community and expressed condolences to the victims’ families.

“Today is an awful day for our community,” Kebler said, emphasizing that schools should provide children with a safe environment in which to learn and feel protected.

The shooting has renewed concerns over gun violence in American schools, where students and educators have repeatedly been targeted in deadly attacks.

In August 2025, a gunman opened fire on children attending Mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, killing two students, aged eight and ten, and injuring 17 other people before taking his own life.

The latest incident adds to the continuing toll of school shootings in the United States, intensifying concerns over the safety of students and school staff.