Police say at least eight people were killed and dozens injured in shootings at a British Columbia high school and a linked home. The suspected shooter is dead.
At least eight people were killed and dozens more were injured in shootings at a British Columbia high school and a nearby residence, Canadian police said. The suspected shooter also died.
The attack was first reported around 1:20 p.m. Pacific at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in the northeast part of the province. RCMP officials said six people were found dead inside the school, including two male students, three female students and an adult female educator.
Later updates raised the death toll to at least eight. Police said four of the students killed were 12 years old, and one was 13. Several additional victims were taken to area hospitals, with officials describing injuries ranging from serious to life-threatening.
Investigators also responded to a second crime scene at a residence believed to be connected to the school shooting.. There, police said two more people were found dead: an adult woman and a boy.. RCMP Superintendent Dwayne McDonald said the victims are believed to be the mother and brother of the suspected shooter. though officials did not immediately disclose further details about their injuries.
At a news conference Wednesday afternoon. RCMP deputy commissioner Dwayne McDonald identified the suspected shooter as 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar. describing the person as a resident of the small community where the school is located.. McDonald said the shooter was found dead from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.. He cautioned that investigators were still gathering evidence and that the scene was “still in its infancy.”
Authorities recovered two firearms—a long gun and a pistol—at the locations where officers responded.. Police said roughly 25 other people were assessed at a local medical center for injuries that officials described as non-life-threatening. while others were airlifted to hospitals for more serious conditions.
RCMP Superintendent Ken Floyd previously said the shooter’s motive remained unclear and that investigators were still working to understand how the victims were connected to the suspect.. The Peace River South School District initially announced a “lockdown and secure and hold” for both Tumbler Ridge Secondary School and Tumbler Ridge Elementary School. later closing the schools for the rest of the week.
In an effort to help the public understand the scope of the tragedy. Tumbler Ridge Mayor Darry Krakowka described the community of about 2. 700 people as close-knit. saying “everybody knows everybody.” In such places. news spreads quickly—sometimes faster than official information—and families can feel the shock long before they learn what investigators have determined.
Investigators also addressed details about the suspected shooter’s gender identity.. McDonald. when asked to clarify. said Jesse “began to transition to female and began identifying as female both socially and publicly.” Police did not indicate how. if at all. that information affects the ongoing investigation.. Still. it points to the broader question many communities face after mass violence: how to separate identity details from the facts needed to prevent future harm.
The killings have also prompted public officials to suspend travel plans. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s office said he was canceling a scheduled trip and said he was “devastated” by the shootings, offering condolences to the families and friends of those killed and harmed.
While the shootings occurred in Canada, the incident resonates across the U.S.. because Americans have repeatedly watched schools become the setting for gun violence—from local incidents that stun towns to national debates about public safety and enforcement.. Canada’s gun violence patterns differ from those in the United States. where mass shootings occur more frequently. but the emotional impact is similar: fear. grief. and demands for answers.
Canada has had fewer mass shootings than the U.S., particularly in school settings.. The country’s most notorious school-adjacent tragedy is often traced to the 1989 massacre at Montreal’s École Polytechnique.. More recently. Canada’s deadliest mass shooting came in April 2020. when 22 people were killed in Nova Scotia in a rampage that led lawmakers to pass an assault weapons ban.. Even so, Canada has still seen other deadly attacks in multiple provinces over the years.
In the aftermath of Monday’s or Wednesday’s moment—when police cordon off buildings and families wait for updates—investigations typically widen to include access to firearms. warning signs. and the relationship between the shooter and victims.. Officials in this case have not said what led to the violence. but the early focus on how victims were connected and why the scenes were linked suggests investigators may spend weeks reconstructing the shooter’s final days.
For the Tumbler Ridge community, the work of recovery will begin long before the full timeline is understood.. School closures can offer short-term safety, but they also underline the reality that learning environments are not automatically safe spaces.. In small towns. the shock can be compounded by the fact that the victims and the people left behind may share the same familiar routines—classrooms. neighborhood paths. and local services.
Looking ahead. questions will likely intensify about what allowed a shooter to act with deadly force and what prevention steps could reduce the odds of future attacks.. Even with differences in laws and gun access. communities across North America will be watching closely—not only for answers about this case. but for any signals about how authorities can detect risk earlier and respond faster when danger emerges.