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1 killed, 25 wounded in Oregon school shooting
Victims injured from the shooting Suspect in custody
May 21, 1998
Web posted at: 1:23 p.m. EDT (1723 GMT)In this story
SPRINGFIELD, Oregon (CNN) -- A male student who had been expelled from an Oregon high school opened fire with a rifle in the school cafeteria on Thursday, killing at least one student, authorities said. They said they are also investigating reports of killings at the boy's home. About 25 other students were reported wounded or injured in the incident at Thurston High School in Springfield.
The gunman, who was taken into custody, was not immediately identified. He had been expelled on Wednesday for trying to bring a gun to class, police said. Witnesses said the gunman was tackled by other students.
All of the victims were students, hospital officials said. Several of the wounded were described as having life-threatening injuries from the attack, which occurred shortly before 8 a.m.
A L S O :
Aerial photo of Thurston High School
Thurston High School web site
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"It happened just before classes started while people were greeting each other around the cafeteria," said Fire Chief Dennis Murphy.
The cafeteria was more crowded than usual at the hour because an honors assembly was taking place.
Springfield, a town of 50,000 people near Eugene, Oregon, is about 110 miles south of Portland.
The school did not have a history of violence, local reporters said. One reporter, whose child attends the school, described it as a "good school, an upbeat school."
Eyewitness accounts
Sophomore Jessica Freeburg said she knew the shooter as a freshman who had been expelled a day earlier for trying to bring a gun to school.
Tracy Berry of KKNU radio talks about the chaotic situation at the school 
304K/30 sec. AIFF or WAV sound Berry also reported that roads to the school were jammed with traffic 143K/14 sec. AIFF or WAV sound "We were in the parking lot getting ready to walk in and everybody came running out and they said: `People are shooting!,'" said 15-year-old Courtney Anderson.
"I heard like firecrackers. People were running and screaming. there were two bodies and blood was everywhere," said a student who refused to give his name as he was taken out of the school by his mother.
The school of 1,700 students was shut down immediately after the shooting and parents, many of them weeping and screaming, waited outside.
Emergency vehicles were hampered by worried parents who blocked roads with their vehicles as they rushed to the high school, which has about 1,700 students. Some vehicles had to be towed.
Some of the injuries may have resulted from the panic that erupted in the cafeteria following the shootings, Jim Brown of KMTR-TV in Springfield told CNN.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Recent shootings at U.S. schools
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Related stories:
- Police: Teen opens fire at school dance, kills teacher - April 25, 1998
- Violent crime rising at U.S. schools - April 12, 1998
- As school reopens, teary Jonesboro students ask: 'Why?' - March 26, 1998
- School shootings have high profile but occur infrequently - March 25, 1998
- Violence against U.S. kids is common - March 25, 1998
- Survey: Serious violence at 10 percent of schools - March 19, 1998
Related sites:
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
- Springfield, Oregon Public School District
- Springfield Chamber of Commerce
- The Spencer Butte Gazette
- Welcome to Springfield, Oregon
- McKenzie Willamette Hospital
- National Center for Education Statistics
- National Alliance for Safe Schools
- Gun-free Schools Act of 1994
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.
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