UVALDE, Texas — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says 15 people were killed in a shooting Tuesday at an elementary school.
Abbott says the suspected shooter, an 18-year-old man, also died and was believed to be killed by responding officers. He says 14 children and one teacher were killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, about 85 miles west of San Antonio.
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Abbott says the shooter had a handgun and possibly a rifle.
Authorities did not immediately provide any details on the shooting, though the Uvalde Police Department said the shooter was in custody shortly after 1 p.m.
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The Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District had said an active shooter was reported at the school, which has an enrollment of just under 600 students. Earlier, the district had said that all schools in the district were locked down because of gunshots in the area.
A heavy police presence surrounded the school Tuesday afternoon, with officers in heavy vests diverting traffic and FBI agents coming and going from the building. School and city officials did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
The district said that the city’s civic center was being used as a reunification center.
The shooting in Texas came less than two weeks after a gunman opened fire at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, killing 10 Black shoppers and workers in what officials have described as a hate crime. Uvalde is home to about 16,000 people and is the seat of government for Uvalde County. The town is about 75 miles from the border with Mexico. Robb Elementary is in a mostly residential neighborhood of modest homes. There is a funeral home across the street from the school.
