2 Kindergarteners In Critical Condition After CA School Shooting

OROVILLE, CA — Two kindergarteners are in "extremely critical condition" after they were shot by a gunman who died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot Wednesday at a small religious school in rural Northern California, according to authorities.

The victims were both boys and were ages 5 and 6, Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said in a media update shared on YouTube by ABC10 late Wednesday afternoon.

"I'm thankful that they are still alive, but they have a long road ahead of them," Honea said at a press conference streamed Wednesday night on Facebook.

Authorities received 911 calls shortly after 1 p.m. about a person who was shooting at students at Feather River School of Seventh-day Adventists just outside Oroville, Honea said in an earlier media update Wednesday afternoon streamed by Action News Now.

The first officer on the scene was with California Highway Patrol and arrived two minutes after the initial call to discover a gunman with a self-inflicted gunshot wound and a handgun nearby, according to Honea.

The shooter came to campus Wednesday to meet with the principal about the possible enrollment of a student, according to Honea, who said the meeting was cordial, but afterward the principal heard gunfire and screaming, and determined two students had been shot.

The victims were outside their classroom when the shooting occurred and they had no connection to the gunman, Honea said.

"This is horribly tragic," he said. "When you're talking about little kids like this who can't defend themselves it just, it really does tear at the heart."

The other students were sequestered in the gym and then brought to the Oroville Church of the Nazarene, where parents were asked to report for reunification, according to the sheriff’s office. Crisis counselors, chaplains, and victim and witness services were also available at the church, Honea said.

"No father, no mother should have to endure what happened today," Sid Patel, special agent in charge of the FBI's Sacramento Field Office, said at the press conference.

Near the school’s slide and other playground equipment Wednesday afternoon was the shooter’s body, covered in a blue tarp, as officers stood nearby to secure the scene. The school, which Honea said does not have a resource officer or other security, abuts ranchland where cattle graze.

Authorities believe they know who the shooter is but they haven't yet confirmed his identity or notified his next of kin, according to Honea, who said the gunman had no known connection to the school but may have targeted it because of its affiliation with the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

The shooter was dropped off by an Uber driver who is being interviewed by investigators, according to Honea.

The Feather River School of Seventh-day Adventists is a private, K-8 school with about 35 students.

"My heart is breaking for everyone impacted by this tragedy," Assemblyman James Gallagher, who represents Butte County, said in a social media post. "We will never understand why or how someone could do a thing like this. ... As a community, we’ll all be hugging our loved ones closer today as we pray for the victims and try to make sense of something so senseless."

The Associated Press contributed to this story.