Here's the latest
• Nine people have been killed and dozens wounded after a shooting at a school and home in northeast British Columbia, Canada on Tuesday afternoon.
• Six of the victims were found dead at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, making it Canada’s deadliest school shooting in decades. A seventh person died en route to hospital, while the bodies of two people were found at a home in the town, which has just 2,400 people.
• The alleged shooter was also found dead at the school with a self-inflicted injury. Police have told CNN they are currently unable to confirm the suspect’s identity.
• Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has told people in Tumbler Ridge “the nation mourns with you.” Mass shootings are rare in Canada, a country with much stricter gun laws than the US.
Conservative leader Poilievre mourns 'heartbreak and hell' for parents of victims
Canada’s opposition leader Pierre Poilievre said he was devastated by the “appalling shooting” in Tumbler Ridge as he headed into a caucus meeting in Ottawa earlier this morning.
“The fact that this took place at a secondary school, it makes it even more tragic,” Poilievre told reporters at Parliament Hill earlier today.
The conservative leader urged Canadians to unite to support the families and community, and said he would speak to Prime Minister Mark Carney later to offer support and work together in the wake of the tragedy.
“I encourage all Canadians to pray for the community and pray for the family as we go forward and take the necessary steps to support them,” he added.
Carney clears much of his schedule for the day following shooting
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has cleared much of his schedule for Wednesday following news of the school shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia.
Early Wednesday morning, the prime minister’s office announced that his previously-announced schedule was “suspended” due to the shooting.
Carney was due to travel to Halifax, Nova Scotia today to “announce new measures to strengthen Canada’s security” before taking a tour of an affordable housing construction site. The prime minister also had a scheduled flight on Wednesday evening from Halifax to Munich for a major international security conference. Both trips were suspended today.
Carney’s new schedule retained his caucus meeting with members of his party in Parliament this morning, as well as a statement in the House of Commons this afternoon. This morning, the prime minister held back tears as he told reporters in Ottawa that “the nation mourns with” Tumbler Ridge.
Police tell CNN they are still unable to publicly confirm suspect's identity
Although some local news outlets have reported the name of the suspect, Canadian police have told CNN they are currently unable to publicly confirm the identity of the suspect in yesterday’s mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge.
Updates will be provided as more information becomes available, she added.
Police previously said they know the identity of the suspect but did not give further details, and declined to say if they were a child.
Survivor of 1989 Montreal school massacre responds to latest shooting
Nathalie Provost, a Canadian MP who survived the 1989 École Polytechnique massacre in Montreal, has responded to yesterday’s school shooting by highlighting the lasting trauma such incidents leave behind.
In 1989, a gunman murdered 14 women in Montreal in a shocking incident that prompted a national reckoning about violence against women and led to tighter gun laws. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said last year that Provost “knows that guns designed to kill people don’t belong on our streets.”
Meanwhile, Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said that schools “should always be places of safety and care.”
“Manitoba stands with our friends and relatives in British Columbia as they grieve this heartbreaking loss,” he posted on X.
“The nation mourns with you,” tearful Carney tells residents of Tumbler Ridge
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has told people in Tumbler Ridge “the nation mourns with you,” as Canadians wake up after a “difficult day” that saw its worst school shooting in decades.
Carney thanked the world leaders who have sent Canada messages of support and compassion, as well as the “first responders, the teachers, the staff, the residents, for everything they’ve done in this terrible situation.”
He added that he was sending Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree to Tumbler Ridge.
King Charles III offers "heartfelt condolences" following Tumbler Ridge "brutal violence"
King Charles III, who is Canada’s head of state, said he and his wife Queen Camilla were “profoundly shocked and saddened” to learn of yesterday’s deadly attack at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in British Columbia.
“We can only express our deepest possible sympathy to the families who are grieving the unimaginable loss of their loved ones and those still awaiting news from hospital,” the King wrote in a statement published on the Royal Family’s official X account.
The monarch described Tumbler Ridge as a community where “every child’s name will be known and every family will be a neighbour.” He expressed sorrow for those affected by what he described as a “senseless act of brutal violence.”
King Charles thanked police officers, healthcare staff and first responders for their efforts.
“In sending our most heartfelt condolences, my wife and I stand in solidarity with the people of Tumbler Ridge and all Canadians as they seek understanding, healing and strength,” he added.
The Prince and Princess of Wales echoed King Charles’ sentiment in a post on the Kensington Royal X account, saying, “We stand with all Canadians.”
Some details are yet to be determined by authorities on the shootings
It has just turned 7.45 a.m. in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, where at least nine people were killed and dozens were injured in two shootings yesterday, including one at a secondary school.
Police said yesterday that two people were found dead in a residence, and another six people were found dead inside Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, with one more dying while being transported to hospital.
Around 27 people were also found injured, two of whom have “serious or life‑threatening injuries,” according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
At a news conference yesterday, RCMP Superintendent Ken Floyd said that police “are not in a place now to be able to understand why and what may have motivated this tragedy.”
When asked about the shooter, Floyd said that authorities were “still trying to determine a lot about the shooter at this stage,” adding that police believed that they had identified the suspect but declined to share any more details.
Police are also “working towards” determining how many of the victims were children, he told reporters, as well as “following all leads” to determine any connections between the shooter and the victims.
Tumbler Ridge needs all the support it can get after shooting, councillor says
We can hear now from a councillor in Tumbler Ridge, the town where Tuesday’s deadly school shooting took place. He has commended the resilience of his community while asking for as much assistance as possible.
Norbury, whose wife is a teacher and was among those held in lockdown at the school yesterday, said he personally knew many of the children impacted.
Officers did not name any of the victims on Tuesday night and would not say how many of the dead were children.
Norbury added that despite the challenges facing Tumbler Ridge, he knows it is a “strong” and “resilient” community.
"Our society is sick," says Tumbler Ridge Secondary teacher
Jarbas Noronha, a teacher at Tumbler Ridge Secondary, shared a Facebook update to let his relatives know he was safe following yesterday’s deadly shooting.
“I never thought I’d use Facebook to say I’m okay,” Noronha wrote in Portuguese.
The educator expressed disbelief at what he and his school community had endured, saying no young person should have this experience.
“I don’t wish on any school age child to have to go through what my students went through today,” he added. “Our society is sick.”
Canada's deadliest recent shootings — from Nova Scotia to Montreal
Tuesday’s deadly attack in Canada is the worst school shooting for decades.
The last school shooting of this scale in the country was in 1989, when a gunman murdered 14 women at École Polytechnique in Montreal.
Mass shootings are rare in Canada, but what other incidents have rocked the country in recent years?
In December 2022, five people were killed in a shooting at a condominium in a Toronto suburb. A male gunman was also shot by an officer during a confrontation and died, police said.
In 2020, a gunman killed 22 people during a shooting rampage in Nova Scotia, sparking a 12-hour manhunt. In the wake of the shootings, then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his administration would strengthen gun laws.
In 2017, six people were killed in a shooting at a mosque in Quebec City in what was described at the time as a coordinated attack. Witnesses said at least two gunmen fired indiscriminately into a crowd of worshipers.
In 2016, four people were killed after gunfire erupted at a school in a small town in Canada’s northern province of Saskatchewan.
Some other deadly incidents have not been related to firearms.
Last April, a man drove his car into a crowd at a Filipino street festival in Vancouver, killing at least 11 people. At the time, police called it “the darkest day” in the city’s history, with those killed between the ages of five and 65.
How Canada’s worst school shooting in decades unfolded
Police received a report at 1.20 p.m. local time (10.20 a.m. ET) Tuesday of an active school shooter at the Tumbler Ridge Secondary School. Within minutes, officers were on the scene.
At around 1.30 p.m., alarms began to sound in the school, announcing a lockdown and ordering that classroom doors be closed. A student said he and his classmates used tables to barricade themselves in.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) soon issued a “shelter in place” warning, telling Tumbler Ridge residents to lock their doors and stay inside until further instruction. The RCMP said a suspect had been found dead, but that its officers were working to determine whether a second suspect was involved.
As well as the suspect, police later said that at least nine people were confirmed dead. Six were found dead when police arrived at the school, and another person died en route to hospital. The alleged shooter is believed to have killed two more people, whose bodies were discovered at a home in the township.
At 5.45 p.m., police called off the emergency alert, saying they did not believe there were any outstanding suspects “or ongoing threat to the public.” Police said the alleged shooter was found “deceased with what appears to be a self-inflicted injury.” Around 25 others were wounded, they said.
Later, at a press conference, Superintendent Ken Floyd, the North District Commander of the British Columbia RCMP said the force was not yet able to say “what may have motivated this strategy.”
What we know about Tumbler Ridge Secondary School
Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, the site of Canada’s deadliest school shooting in decades, will be closed for the rest of the week, according to the school district.
The school has 160 students from Grades 7 to 12 (typically aged 12-18). This small size has led to a “tremendous sense of community, as we tend to create strong and enduring relationships among staff and students,” its website says.
The school has a fish farm and offers various extracurricular activities including athletics and a student voice initiative. It is located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, according to its website.
One of the school district’s most recently uploaded newsletters is a guide to risk assessments for threats of student violence, which outlines the behaviors that warrant such an assessment to be initiated.
"There's that sense of safety...that's been shattered," says local reporter
A Tumbler Ridge-based journalist who attended the scene after receiving word of the incident described the worry and shock that has enveloped the town following the school shooting yesterday.
Speaking to Gloria Macarenko on Canada’s CBC News, Trent Ernst said residents alerted him to reports of an active shooter via Facebook. He discovered roads were blocked once he neared the address.
The reporter said people in the area were advised to take shelter. “My wife works at the district office and they were locked down,” Ernst said, adding that his eldest daughter, who works at a daycare centre beside the school where the shooting took place, remained on lockdown for an extended time.
Ernst said unsubstantiated reports have spread quickly, causing panic. “People are definitely worried,” he added. “There’s a lot of worried parents right now.”
Addressing the devastation felt throughout his community, he described an otherwise peaceful town unfamiliar with tragedy.
“There’s that sense of quietness, safety. These things are things that happen elsewhere, they don’t happen here,” Ernst said, becoming emotional as he added, “And that’s been shattered.”
How strict are Canada's gun laws?
Canada has much stricter gun laws than the United States, and school shootings of this scale are almost unheard of.
In 2023, 38% of homicides in Canada involved a firearm, while 76% of homicides in the US were firearm-related, according to an analysis by Canada’s national statistics body using police-reported data from the Uniform Crime Reporting programs in both countries.
Canadian law requires citizens to undergo robust background checks before obtaining a gun license. Gun laws were expanded in 2022.
In Canada, there are an estimated 35 guns per 100 residents compared to 121 firearms for every 100 residents in the US, according to a 2018 Small Arms Research project report.
In British Columbia, where the shooting occurred, there are 368,433 firearms licences issued, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s 2024 Firearms Report. This is higher than most other provinces or territories.
“This is a lockdown. Close the doors:” Student describes being barricaded in classroom
The alarm sounded soon after Darian Quist got to his class at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School early yesterday afternoon.
When he realized it wasn’t a drill, Quist, a Grade 12 student, and his classmates “got tables and barricaded the doors,” he told CBC Radio West.
Quist and his classmates waited in the barricaded building for about two hours, he said. Some began to share “disturbing” photos of “what was actually happening” elsewhere in the school, “showing blood and things like that.”
Police eventually arrived to escort the students out of the building.
Waiting outside in the parking lot was Shelley Quist, his mother. Earlier, one of her coworkers at a nearby laboratory had asked “if I knew what was happening at the high school.”
As reports trickled in, she began to realize what was unfolding. “It’s one of those things where you just never think this is going to happen.” she added.
Quist said she felt “panic” until she could see her son among the students safely escorted from the building.
Vancouver's ice hockey team offers "heartfelt condolences" to loved ones of shooting victims
The Vancouver Canucks, the ice hockey team of British Columbia’s largest city, has offered its “heartfelt condolences” to the loved ones of those affected by yesterday’s shootings in Tumbler Ridge.
The Canucks also sent “love, strength, and support to those who were injured or deeply affected by this heartbreaking tragedy.”
“Our organization stands with you, as a community, as neighbours, and as friends and family, united in care and compassion,” the team said.
What we know so far about the deadly shootings in Canada
At least nine people were killed and dozens more injured in two shootings in a remote mountain town in Canada yesterday afternoon.
If you’re just joining us, here’s what we know about the fatal attacks so far:
- Canada’s deadliest school shooting in decades took place at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in northeast British Columbia yesterday. Tumbler Ridge is a town of just 2,400 people, with 160 students enrolled in the school, according to the school district’s website.
- Six victims were found dead in the school, as well as the shooter, police said in a statement. Another person died while being transported to the hospital, they said. Around 27 people were also found injured, two of whom have “serious or life‑threatening injuries.”
- During their investigation, police also found “a secondary location believed to be connected to the incident,” where two more people were found dead in a home, they said.
- In an emergency alert which went out to residents’ phones yesterday, authorities described the suspected shooter as a brown-haired woman wearing a dress, according to CNN affiliate CBC News. Police said they know the identity of the suspect but did not give further details.
- None of the victims of the shootings have yet been identified, and officers did not say how many of the dead were children.
Carney says he's devastated by "horrific shootings"
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney has said that he is devastated by the “horrific shootings” that took place in Tumbler Ridge, northeast British Columbia yesterday.
Carney offered his “prayers and deepest condolences” to the loved ones of the victims, who he said were lost to “horrific acts of violence.”
“Our ability to come together in crisis is the best of our country — our empathy, our unity, and our compassion for each other,” Carney continued, adding that the Canadian government “stands with all British Columbians as they confront this horrible tragedy.”
CNN’s Lucas Lilieholm contributed to this reporting.
Image shows students leaving Tumbler Ridge school after shooting
This image, which is a screenshot from a video, shows students leaving the Tumbler Ridge school after Tuesday’s deadly shooting.
The secondary school has just 160 students from Grades 7 to 12, according to the school district’s website.
Police found six people dead and dozens injured when they arrived at the school early on Tuesday afternoon.
World leaders respond to deadly Canada school shooting
We’re starting to hear now from world leaders in response to Canada’s deadly school shooting on Tuesday afternoon.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the shooting has “deeply shaken us.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was “shocked” by the news of the shooting. “When children are killed, no one should remain indifferent. Such tragedies should never happen anywhere,” he said.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he had conveyed the UK’s “deepest condolences” to Prime Minister Mark Carney and the Canadian people, describing the incident as “devastating.”
For context: Officers did not name any of the victims on Tuesday night and would not say how many of the dead were children.
Meanwhile, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said his country “stands in solidarity with the people of Canada in this moment of profound grief.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said “horror has stuck a school,” adding that his thoughts are “with the families of the victims, the injured, and the entire educational community.”
“France stands with the Canadians,” he added.
US Ambassador Pete Hoekstra offered “hearts and prayers” to Tumbler Ridge and British Columbia in a post on social media Wednesday morning, writing that his “personal prayer is that in these difficult times, they find the peace and comfort that only He can provide.”
