10 Dead in British Columbia School Shooting as Canada Records Second-Deadliest Campus Attack

Ten people, including the suspected gunman, were killed on Tuesday in a mass shooting at a secondary school in Tumbler Ridge, a small town in Canada’s western province of British Columbia, authorities have confirmed.

According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), nine victims and the suspect died in the attack. Canadian public broadcaster CBC reported that six people were found dead inside Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, one victim died while being transported to hospital, and two others were discovered dead at a nearby residence believed to be linked to the incident.

Police said the suspected shooter was found dead inside the school from a self-inflicted injury.

About 25 people were being assessed for injuries at a local medical centre following the attack, while a shelter-in-place order imposed on Tumbler Ridge and surrounding communities was lifted at about 6:45 p.m. local time.

Authorities have launched a full investigation into the shooting.

The attack is being described as the second-deadliest school shooting in Canadian history, after the December 1989 massacre at École Polytechnique in Montreal, where 14 people were killed.

Tumbler Ridge, a community of about 2,400 residents, is located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, approximately 680 kilometres from the United States border.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “devastated” by the tragedy, offering prayers and condolences to the victims’ families.

“I join Canadians in grieving with those whose lives have been changed irreversibly today, and in gratitude for the courage and selflessness of the first responders who risked their lives to protect their fellow citizens,” Carney said in a statement.

He added that he had spoken with British Columbia Premier David Eby and Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree to coordinate the federal response, assuring residents that the federal government is working closely with provincial authorities to support the affected community.