Two students, two teachers killed in Georgia high school shooting, 14-year-old suspect in custody: authorities

Two students and two teachers were killed in a shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, Wednesday morning, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Nine other injured victims were taken to hospitals, the GBI said.

The suspect, Colt Gray, 14, a student at Apalachee High School, was arrested by officers minutes later. He immediately surrendered and was taken into custody, the GBI said. He will be charged with murder and tried as an adult, the GBI said.

It is unclear whether any of the victims were targeted, authorities said.

Students and parents speak out

Sergio Caldera, 17, said he was in chemistry class when he heard gunshots.

“My teacher goes to open the door to see what’s going on. Another teacher runs in and tells him to close the door because there’s an active shooter,” Caldera told ABC News.

He said his teacher locked the door and the students ran to the back of the classroom. Caldera said they heard screams coming from outside as they “huddled together.”

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At one point, someone knocked on his classroom door and yelled “open up!” repeatedly. When the knocking stopped, Caldera said she heard more gunshots and screams.

He said his class was then evacuated to the football field.

Kyson Stancion said he was in class when he heard gunshots and “heard the police yelling, telling someone, ‘There’s a shooting, get down, go back to class.'”

“I was scared because I’ve never been involved in a school shooting,” he told ABC News.

“Everyone was crying. My teacher tried to keep everyone safe,” he added.

Father Jonathan Mills said he experienced an “emotional rollercoaster” as he and his wife rushed to the school and waited to pick up their son, Jayden.

It was “exhilarating” and “overwhelming” to reach out to Jayden, a junior, and learn he was okay, Mills told ABC News.

Mills, a police officer, said: “Growing up in this neighborhood, you don’t expect things like this to happen.”

“I have three children. All three of them go to this group of schools, and you never think about it,” he said.

Winder is approximately 45 miles from Atlanta.

Barrow County schools will be closed through the end of the week, the superintendent said.

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith called the shooting “purely evil.”

Leaders react

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have been briefed on the shooting, the White House said.

“Jill and I mourn the loss of those whose lives were cut short by senseless gun violence and think of all the survivors whose lives have been forever changed,” Biden said in a statement. “Students across the country are learning to duck and cover instead of learning to read and write. We cannot continue to accept this as normal.”

The president highlighted his work to combat gun violence, including signing the bipartisan Safer Communities Act and creating the first White House Office on Gun Violence Prevention. But he stressed that more needs to be done.

“After decades of inaction, Republicans in Congress must finally say ‘enough is enough’ and work with Democrats to pass common-sense gun safety legislation,” Biden said. “We must reban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, require safe gun storage, implement universal background checks, and end gun manufacturer immunity. These steps won’t bring back those tragically killed today, but they will help prevent more gun violence from tearing more families apart.”

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Harris said at a campaign event in New Hampshire: “Our hearts go out to all the students, teachers and their families.”

“This is a senseless tragedy on top of so many other senseless tragedies,” she said. “We must end this epidemic of gun violence.”

“This is one of the many issues at stake in this election,” Harris said.

“Let’s finally pass an assault weapons ban, universal background checks, and red flag laws,” she said. “It’s a false choice to say you either support the Second Amendment or you want to take away everyone’s guns. I support the Second Amendment, and I know we need reasonable gun safety laws in our country.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said he was heartbroken.

“This is a day every parent dreads, and Georgians everywhere will be hugging their children tighter tonight because of this painful event,” he said in a statement. “We continue to work closely with local, state and federal partners to make every resource available to help this community during this incredibly difficult day and in the days ahead.”

In Atlanta, authorities will “increase patrols” around schools on Wednesday “out of an abundance of caution,” Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said in a statement.

“My prayers are with the students, staff and families of the high school affected by this senseless act of violence,” Dickens said.

This is a developing story. Please check back regularly for updates.

ABC News’ Josh Margolin, Brandon Baur, Faith Abubey and Miles Cohen contributed to this report.

Two students, two teachers killed in Georgia high school shooting, 14-year-old suspect in custody: authorities Original article on abcnews.go.com