On Thursday, Rigby Middle School in Idaho witnessed a deadly shooting. The shooter was a sixth-grade girl who took out a handgun from her school bag and began shooting at other students in the hallway. According to the local authorities, the girl only stopped her firing mission when a teacher from school intervened.
Three people including an adult and two students were injured at Rigby Middle School as the girl fired at two students inside the school before leaving the premises and shooting another adult outside. All three victims have received minor injuries and are expected to survive, said County Sheriff Steve Anderson.
Students were petrified when they learnt that the constant intercom announcements to seal the school were not part of a drill. In conversation with Idaho Falls Local News 8, a seventh grader named Maddie Jensen described the fearful experience of being in a school with an active shooter.
She elaborated on how they didn’t take it seriously “until we heard footsteps in the hallway,” followed by a resounding police siren. As soon as Jensen heard the sounds, she immediately alerted her friends of the impending danger.
Yandel Rodriguez, another student at Rigby Middle School stated how the class heard three booming noises, which was followed by a set of piercing screams. “Our teacher went to check it out, and he found blood,” added the 12-year-old student.
Other students also gave a brief account of what it was like to be a part of an active shooting. Maren King, a seventh grader at Rigby Middle School described how she was consoling children who were scared beyond measure. Just moments before, Maren, like many others, was under the impression of the noises being a part of the principal’s plan to make the drill seem more life-like.
Lucy Long, another sixth grader at Rigby Middle School told the local newspaper in Idaho about her experience. She was occupied in comforting her friends who were not only shocked, but also terrified. Moreover, Lucy was quick to start a video recording on her phone so police officials would know how the scene unfolded if the shooter was to walk in. The shooting came to an abrupt halt when a teacher took away the suspect’s handgun, and “held her until law enforcement apprehended her,” stated Anderson.
The motive for the shooting is still unknown. Jefferson School District Superintendent, Chad Martin declared Friday as a holiday for schools across the district in order to give children time to recoup. He termed the entire incident as “the worst nightmare” that could have befallen upon a school full of young children.
