Canada school shooting latest: Nine killed and dozens injured in one of country’s worst mass shootings – UK Times

A mother has revealed that her daughter was one of the dozens injured in the school shooting – and is now fighting for her life.

The 12-year-old girl suffered gunshot wounds to her head and neck.

“Today started as any other,” the mother said in a post on Facebook.

“Now, however, my 12 year old daughter is fighting for her life while they try to repair the damage from a gun shot wound to the head. And one to the neck,” she added.

“She was a lucky one, I suppose. Condolences to the other families during this tragedy. This doesnt even feel real.

“I never thought I would be asking for prayers.. but please please, pray for my baby,” she added.

In one of Canada’s worst ever mass shootings, at least 10 people have died and more than 25 others are injured at a school and home in British Columbia.

The shooting took place at around 2pm on Tuesday in Tumbler Ridge, a small town in the Canadian Rockies with a population of 2,400. Officials say the town’s small police arrived on the scene two minutes after receiving a call.

Authorities sent out an intrusive mobile alert to urge residents to shelter in place, lock their doors, and refrain from going outside following reports of an active shooter.

Police arrived at the scene to find eight people, including the shooter, dead in Tumbler Ridge Secondary School and two more in a nearby home.

The shooter has been described as a woman with brown hair wearing a dress – a development which would be unusual, as mass shootings in North America are almost always carried out by men.

Investigators say they know the identity of the shooter but will not yet release a name. According to The Globe and Mail, they are also looking into reports of second shooter.

Tumbler Ridge is more than 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) north of Vancouver. The local government website lists Tumbler Ridge Secondary School as having 175 students from Grades 7 to 12.

On Tuesday evening, Canadian prime minister Mark Carney said he was “devastated” by the shooting, and said he grieves “with those whose lives have been changed irreversibly today”. He also thanked the first responders for their “courage and selflessness”.

A cafe nextdoor to Tumbler Ridge Secondary School will be closed on Wednesday to support the “shocked and grieving” local community.

Twisted Seasons Bistro, which is metres away from where the shooting took place, addressed the residents of Tumbler Ridge in a post on Facebook.

“TR [Tumbler Ridge] is home, the people here are more than friends and neighbors, they are FAMILY, and what happened here today has left us all shocked and grieving,” it wrote.

“We will not be open tomorrow, so that we can support our families through this. You are not alone….. reach out if you need help.”

Arianna Bazinet, a local resident, saw police cars speeding into town on Tuesday and soon received the emergency alert from the authorities regarding the mass shooting.

“I immediately sent it to my mom and said, ‘Hey, stay in the house, don’t go anywhere,’” Ms Bazinet was quoted as saying by The Globe and Mail.

“We had no idea that it had actually started when kids went back to school at lunchtime.”

She said one of her friend’s sisters was still missing on Tuesday evening. “They can’t find her, and it’s just horrible. We’re hoping to hear good news. We’re praying for good news, but we can only hope.”

Tumbler Ridge mayor Darryl Krakowka said the whole community was grieving after the “tragic day” for Tumbler Ridge.

“I broke down,” he said. “It’s devastating.”

“I have lived here for 18 years,” he said.

The community is a “big family”, he said. “I probably know every one of the victims.”

A local councillor at Tumbler Ridge, Chris Norbury, described Tuesday’s events as an “unbelievable tragedy that our community has to live through”.

He told Globe and Mail: “It’ll take a very long time for us to heal.

“The first responders, I can only imagine how they feel, having to see children that they know, fearful that have lost their lives.

“Multiple people have died,” he said.

“We all know them. And they were friends. And their parents were our friends.”

A student at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School told CBC News that the community should “hold each other close”.

At least nine were killed – including six at the secondary school – in a mass shooting at multiple locations in Tumbler Ridge on Tuesday.

“The reality of it all is starting to set in,” Darian Quist, a Grade 12 student, said.

He said the situation is “almost surreal”.

“It felt like I was somewhere that I had only seen across a TV.”