Texas School Shooting: 19 Children Killed In Uvalde

UVALDE, TX — The number of children killed in a school shooting Tuesday at a Texas elementary school has risen to at least 19, according to reports. The gunman was also killed in the shooting.

The Texas Department of Public Safety has confirmed to multiple outlets, including The New York Times, that 19 children and two adults were killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde.

The Department of Public Safety did not immediately respond to Patch's request for comment.

The shooter was armed with a handgun when he entered Robb Elementary School in Uvalde and was believed to have been killed in the shooting by law enforcement officers, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said. The governor previously confirmed that 14 children and a teacher were among the dead.

Abbott identified the shooter as 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, of Uvalde. It is possible he also brought a rifle into the school, but that has not been confirmed, Abbott said.

Ramos shot his grandmother before entering the school, according to reports.

It is believed the shooter acted alone, Pete Arredondo, the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District Chief of Police, said Tuesday afternoon.

Arredondo said the shooting started at 11:32 a.m. Tuesday at a building for second, third and fourth graders and confirmed there were multiple deaths and injuries. All campuses in the district were placed under lockdown.

"My heart was broken today," Uvalde CISD Superintendent Hal Harrell said at a news conference Tuesday night.

The remainder of the school year is canceled, including extracurricular activities. Information on graduation will be released at a later time, Harrell said. The last day of school for the district was scheduled for Thursday.

The school district will begin offering grief counseling services beginning at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Harrell said.

School district officials declined to answer questions and announced they would release more details as the investigation continues.

The shooting is the deadliest at a U.S. elementary school since the Sandy Hook massacre in 2012. It comes four years after a gunman killed 10 people in a shooting at Santa Fe High School in the Houston area.

Uvalde Memorial Hospital said 13 children were sent to their facility after the shooting. The hospital created space on the second floor cafeteria for immediate family members and asked others to stay away.

Two people, a 66-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl, are being treated at University Hospital in San Antonio. Both are in critical condition, according to the hospital. Two adults in critical condition are being treated at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.

The South Texas Blood & Tissue Center in San Antonio sent 15 liters of blood to Uvalde for shooting victims, the center said.

The center is hosting an emergency blood drive from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Herby Ham Activity Center in Uvalde. Donations can be made by appointment, and walk-ins also are welcome, the center said.

Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation are at the school.

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas has been briefed on the shooting, according to a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson.

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents provided support after the shooting. The Department of Homeland Security is coordinating with and supporting federal, state, and local authorities, the spokesperson said.

The San Antonio Police Department sent units to assist Uvalde police, according to San Antonio Police Chief Bill McManus.

President Biden ordered the American flag be flown at half-staff on all government and military buildings until sunset Saturday.

Officials took Robb Elementary students to the Willie DeLeon Civic Center for reunification with their parents, according to the district.

Parents of students attending other schools in the district were encouraged to pick up their students as bus service was canceled. The district said officers would escort children to their parents' cars.

Uvalde is a town of around 15,000 people located 85 miles west of San Antonio at the junction of U.S. Highway 83 and U.S. Highway 90. The town has a nearly 80 percent Hispanic population.

The shooting comes less than two weeks after the massacre at a Buffalo grocery store that killed 10 Black people and wounded three others.