Man With High-powered Rifle Shoots Two Students – Colorado

Deer Creek Middle School Shooting

It’s difficult to say how badly this could have turned out had it not been for a courageous 7th grade math teacher, Dr. David Benke and several others. Two students were shot at a middle school on Tuesday afternoon before teachers tackled a man with a high-powered rifle outside of the school. Authorities say the man is in custody. They have not established any motive and according to reports, the suspect does not have any ties to the school.

Jacki Kelley, spokesperson for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, says one victim was found inside at Deer Creek Middle School and the other was found outside the school. Both are expected to survive.

Deer Creek is on West Columbine Drive near South Garrison Street

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Reese Ferrin, a Deer Creek student, says he was standing next to Dr. David Benke, a seventh grade math teacher, when the shootings began.

“I was by the crosswalk and the gunman came around the corner and Dr. Benke ran and tackled him,” Reese said.

Reese says Benke tackled the gunman first and other teachers piled on top of him.

Benke’s husband, Sandra Benke, told 9NEWS he called her just after the shooting.

“He wanted me to know, first of all that he was OK. That there’d been a shooting at the school and that he’d had to tackle the gunman and before he was able to get the gunman down he got a shot off and shot one of the students,” she said.

via read Full Article – 2 students injured in Deer Creek Middle School shooting.

Finland – Shooting Spree At Vocational School Kills 9

A gunman opened fire at a vocational school for adults in western Finland on Tuesday before shooting himself, police said. Finnish media reported nine people were killed and the gunman was wounded.

The shootings began just before 11 a.m. local time as about 150 students went to class in Kauhajoki, 180 miles northwest of Helsinki. Witnesses said panic broke out as the hooded gunman entered the school and began firing.

“Within a short space of time I heard several dozen rounds of shots, in other words it was an automatic pistol,” school janitor Jukka Forsberg told broadcaster YLE. “I saw some female students who were wailing and moaning and one managed to escape out of the back door.”

YLE, citing police at the school, reported nine people were killed. The Finnish news agency STT said the school building was on fire and the gunman reportedly had explosives on him.