Students' End-of-Year Celebrations Shattered by Shooting

Voice of America
25 May 2022, 17:35 GMT+10

The children at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, were two days away from their summer break when Tuesday's massacre unfolded.

They had visited the zoo and participated in a gifted-and-talented showcase, recent posts on the school's Facebook page showed. Tuesday was awards day, according to the calendar, and students were invited to wear a nice outfit and fun shoes as part of a 'footloose and fancy' theme.

But at 11:43 a.m., a note was posted on the Facebook feed: 'Please know at this time Robb Elementary is under a Lockdown Status due to gunshots in the area. The students and staff are safe in the building,' it read.

Then came a second message: 'There is an active shooter at Robb Elementary. Law enforcement is on site.'

School administrators asked parents to stay away. The school serves about 570 children in second through fourth grades, nearly 90% of them Hispanic.

The details that came next were devastating: an 18-year-old gunman had opened fire at the school, killing 18 children and one adult, officials said. Read full story

Messages poured in from around the world, offering prayers and expressing outrage at yet another U.S. mass shooting.

'Our hearts are breaking for the families that have been affected by this evil,' Susan Vanderwier of Indiana wrote on the school's Facebook page.

The school district said the elementary school, where the mission statement is 'Live. Learn. Love. Lead,' would remain closed for the final days of the school year.

Reuters
Subscribe

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to San Francisco Star.

More Information

58 ℉

Fair in San Francisco

United States

Section

Philippines terminates China talks for joint energy exploration

Manila[Philippines], June 25 (ANI): The Philippines has terminated talks with China for a joint energy project in the South China ...

IOC excludes International Boxing Association from Olympic Games Paris 2024

Zurich [Switzerland], June 25 (ANI): The Executive Board (EB) of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has decided that the boxing ...

Indian Junior Women's Hockey Team set to take on Netherlands in Uniphar U23 five Nations Tournament 2022 final

Dublin [Ireland], June 25 (ANI): The Indian Junior Women's Hockey Team is all set to take on the Netherlands in ...

Biden signs bipartisan bill on gun safety into law

Washington [US], June 25 (ANI): US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a bipartisan gun safety bill in ...

Giant filamentous bacteria found in mangroves of Guadeloupe: Research

Washington [US], June 25 (ANI): Researchers describe the morphological and genomic features of a 'macro' microbe' -- a giant filamentous ...

Reports: LAFC finalizing deal with Welsh star Gareth Bale

Los Angeles FC are finalizing a deal with Welsh superstar Gareth Bale, multiple outlets reported Saturday. The 32-year-old forward will ...

International

Section