A 14-year-old student opened fire inside a north-central Georgia high school on Wednesday, sending shockwaves of fear through the hallways and spreading confusion about whether the incident was real or just a drill.
Students and teachers inside the school learned that the incident was real as two teachers and two students were killed and nine injured.
The shooter, 14-year-old Colt Gray, was taken into custody and will be tried as an adult, according to Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey.
FOX5 in Atlanta He spoke to students and parents about the incident that happened at the school on Wednesday afternoon.
Georgia high school shooting: 4 dead, 1 suspect in custody, authorities say
A still from an aerial video feed in Winder, Georgia, on Sept. 4, 2024. Students and staff gather next to the football field after police officers responded to a deadly shooting at Apalachee High School. (ABC affiliate WSB, via Reuters)
One student told reporters he didn't know what was going on, but then heard a message over the school's internal communications system telling them to go into strict lockdown, after which he and other students went to a corner of the classroom and huddled on the ground.
Another student told reporters that he was listening to music at the time and was surprised to hear the loud commotion.
“I heard gunshots. I had my headphones on really loud. I was listening to Ken Carson really loud and I heard gunshots. I was like, 'Oh no,' my friend threw me to the ground. I thought it was fake until I heard more gunshots and screaming,” he said.
Who is the suspect in the Georgia school shooting? What we know
The student recounted the scene, saying that when police finally opened the room, the students were asked to put their hands up, and when they left they found a gun and bullets in the room and a body on the floor with blood splattered on it.
Students also told police they saw an AK on the floor when they left the building. Authorities have not yet said what type of gun the gunman used.
Students who spoke to the station said many initially thought it was a joke because active shooter drills happen “all the time.”
Georgia school shooting: Live updates
That was until another student told her that there were police all over the school and that this was not a drill. The student also told the reporter that pursuits had taken place inside the school.
“Our math teacher got shot and was just lying there covered in blood,” the student said.
FOX 5 spoke with a 10th grade girl who said she heard gunshots and her teacher left her classroom, came back and turned off the lights.
Georgia high school shooting sparks emotional reaction from rival football school
She said she heard students screaming in the hallway and saw the aftermath as they filed out of their classrooms.
The mother and daughter were reunited after the shooting and spoke to police about how they felt when they found out about the incident at their daughter's school.
The mother said she was initially very worried about not being able to see her daughter and “it was a horrible feeling.”
Her daughter, a second-year student at the school, spoke about the training situation.
“At first they said it was a drill, then they said it wasn't a drill,” her daughter said. “When I found out I texted my mom and she told me, 'I love you,' and I was scared.”
Click here to get the FOX News app
She further explained that she was worried she might never see her parents again.
