Deadly School Shooting in Tumbler Ridge Leaves Nine Dead

Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia — A tragic shooting at a small-town high school has claimed nine lives, making it Canada’s deadliest school attack in over 30 years.

The violence unfolded Tuesday afternoon at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in northeastern British Columbia. Police responded at 1:20 p.m. to reports of an active shooter, arriving within minutes as the school went into lockdown.

Authorities found six people dead inside the school, with another victim dying during transport to hospital. Two additional bodies were discovered at a nearby home. The alleged shooter, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, a local resident, was found dead at the school from what appeared to be a self-inflicted injury.

Around 27 people were injured, including two with critical wounds. Students had barricaded themselves in classrooms during the attack.

Tumbler Ridge is a community of just 2,400 people, and the secondary school enrolls 160 students in grades 7-12. The tight-knit town has been devastated by the loss.

Prime Minister Mark Carney, visibly emotional, told the town “the nation mourns with you” and sent his Public Safety Minister to the area. King Charles III also expressed condolences.

This is Canada’s worst school shooting since 1989, when 14 were killed in Montreal. Mass shootings are rare in Canada, which has stricter gun laws than the U.S.—firearms were involved in 38% of Canadian homicides in 2023 compared to 76% in America.

Police are still investigating what motivated the attack. The school will stay closed for the remainder of the week as the community begins processing the tragedy.

 

Source:

https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/tumbler-ridge-canada-shooting-02-11-26