Kentucky high school shooting leaves 2 dead
January 23, 2018
A 15-year-old boy opened fire in a rural Kentucky high school on Tuesday, killing two students and injuring dozens in the US's first fatal school shooting of 2018.
Police arrested the student after the shooting at Marshall County High School in the small town of Benton. Officers secured the school grounds and students were transported to another nearby school.
"This is a tremendous tragedy and speaks to the heartbreak present in our communities," Governor Matt Bevin of the southeastern state of Kentucky said. "It is unbelievable that this would happen in a small, close-knit community like Marshall County."
The suspected shooter opened fire with a handgun in the school's atrium shortly before the start of morning classes at 8 a.m. local time (1300 UTC/GMT).
A 15-year-old girl was killed at the scene and a 15-year-old boy died after arriving at a local hospital.
Seventeen other students were injured — 12 of them with gunshot wounds.
Police said they would charge the suspected attacker with murder and attempted murder and are investigating the shooter's home and background.
The advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety says it has logged 283 school shootings in the US since 2013.
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amp/msh (AFP, AP, dpa)