Two boys, aged 5 and 6, were in “extremely critical condition” on Wednesday after a shooting at a Christian K-8 school in California, authorities have said. The gunman died at the scene and was found near the playground.
The kindergarteners were attending Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists, a school in in Palermo with fewer than three dozen students, when the shooting occurred shortly after 1 p.m. Tuesday.
The gunman was dropped off at the school by an Uber driver who is being interviewed by detectives, Butte County Sheriff Kory L. Honea said during a press conference.
Honea said the shooter was in a “cordial” meeting with an administrator about enrolling a child at the school. The sheriff said it appears to have been the man’s first visit to the school and he had no prior connection to the victims.
The shooter’s body was found near the slide and other playground equipment on the grounds of the school, Honea said, and a handgun was found nearby.
California Governor Gavin Newsom called the shooting “heartbreaking.”
“Once again, a community is shattered by senseless gun violence,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Our hearts are with the children, their families, and everyone impacted by this horrific tragedy. To the survivors of gun violence: You are never alone. California stands with you.”
This is a breaking news story.
