ROCKFORD, Washington: A shooter opened fire at a high school in Washington state Wednesday, killing one person and injuring at least three others, authorities said.
Brian Schaeffer of the Spokane Fire Department told reporters that one person died at Freeman High School in Rockford, south of Spokane, and three injured victims were taken to a hospital.
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children’s Hospital received three pediatric patients, spokeswoman Nicole Stewart said. They were in stable condition, and family members were with them, she said.
Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said at the scene that the shooter was in custody, The Spokesman-Review newspaper reported.
Cheryl Moser said her son, a freshman at Freeman High School, called her from a classroom after hearing shots fired.
“He called me and said, ‘Mom there are gunshots.’ He sounded so scared. I’ve never heard him like that,” Moser told the newspaper. “You never think about something happening like this at a small school.”
Ambulances and a Lifeflight helicopter were sent to the school.
Stephanie Lutje told The Associated Press that she was relieved to hear her son was safe after his high school near Freeman was put on lockdown. She commended the school district for its communication with parents.
“It’s been amazing, within probably 15-20 minutes of hearing about it, I’d already received a phone call, I’d already received a text message saying that their school is OK,” she said.
She still worried for others she knew, including a co-worker who had yet to hear from her son, a sophomore at Freeman.
“My stomach’s in knots right now,” she said.
1 dead, 3 injured Washington state high school shooting
1 dead, 3 injured Washington state high school shooting
UK starts visa requirements for St. Lucians
- Saint Lucia’s government said it was actively engaging with British government
- It said it would continue talks to “explore pathways for maintaining strong mobility arrangements“
CASTRIES: Britain has introduced a visa requirement for Saint Lucians effective from Thursday citing a “notable increase” in nationals from the small Caribbean nation claiming asylum, Saint Lucia’s government said in a statement.
Immigration is one of Britain’s most politically sensitive issues, and Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government has sought to show it is tightening the system as the populist Reform UK party gains ground in opinion polls.
Saint Lucia, a former British colony, has a population of about 180,000. Last year, the World Bank estimated a net emigration of just 23 people.
Its government said it was actively engaging with British government and would continue talks to “explore pathways for maintaining strong mobility arrangements.”
It said it was informed in a letter dated Wednesday.
Saint Lucia is a member of the Commonwealth, an association of mostly former British colonies. Before the 1970s, nationals of many of these had the right to live and work in the UK. Saint Lucians previously needed a 16 pound Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) to travel to the UK. \
There will be a six-week transition for ETA holders, its government said.
On Tuesday, Britain said it would block study visas for Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan and halt work visas for Afghans.
