The suspected Texas school shooter is believed to have shot his grandmother before going to the school, three law enforcement sources tell CNN. State Sen. Roland Gutierrez said the woman was airlifted to San Antonio and “is still holding on,” citing information he was given by the Texas Rangers.
[Previous story, published at 6:49 p.m. ET]
Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District police Chief Pete Arredondo said there also were multiple injuries from a “mass casualty incident” at Robb Elementary in Uvalde. The gunman is believed to have acted alone and is dead, he said.
Arredondo declined to provide further details or take questions.
The suspected shooter is from Uvalde, Abbott said. He was identified as Salvador Ramos, according to officials.
“It’s believed that he abandoned his vehicle and entered into the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde with a handgun and he may have also had a rifle, but that is not yet confirmed according to my most recent report. He shot and killed, horrifically, incomprehensively, fourteen students and killed a teacher,” he said.
Uvalde Memorial Hospital spokesperson Tom Nordwick earlier said that two people died in the school shooting and that 13 children and a man in his 40s were being treated for injuries.
US Customs and Border Protection, which is the largest law enforcement agency in the area, assisted with the response. A CBP agent was shot in the head. His injuries are non-life-threatening, according to the official.
The governor said two law enforcement officers were hit by bullets, but didn’t have serious injuries.
Videos taken by a bystander, Isaias Melendez, show scores of armed officers at the scene while others flee the school.
The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) are assisting local police with the investigation.
30th shooting at a K-12 school this year
This marks at least the 30th shooting at a K-12 school in 2022. Excluding Tuesday’s shooting, so far in 2022 there have been at least 38 shootings in K-12 schools, colleges and universities, resulting in at least 10 deaths and 51 injuries.
The school district said it is canceling all school activities following the shooting.
CNN’s Christina Maxouris, Evan Perez, Shimon Prokupecx, Joe Sutton, Andy Rose, Priscilla Alvarez and Joseph Bonheim contributed to this report.
