Source : Perth Now news
A shooting in the engineering building at Brown University on the second day of final exams has left at least two people dead and eight critically injured.
The Ivy League school in the city of Providence in the US state of Rhode Island, issued an active shooter alert and urged students and staff to take shelter, later confirming two fatalities.
Police did not immediately release details about the number of victims, their conditions or the circumstances of the shooting.
University officials initially told students and staff that a suspect was in custody, before later saying that was not the case and that police were still searching for a suspect or suspects, according to alerts issued through Brown’s emergency notification system.
“We’re still getting information about what’s going on, but we’re just telling people to lock their doors and to stay vigilant,” said Providence Council member John Goncalves, whose ward includes the Brown campus.
“As a Brown alum, someone who loves the Brown community and represents this area, I’m heartbroken. My heart goes out to all the family members and the folks who’ve been impacted.”
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley asked for prayers for the families of the victims, noting the coming Christmas holiday.
“It’s going to be a difficult rest of the day, difficult days and months ahead as this community heals,” he said.
The mayor declined to say whether the victims were students.
Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee said “the unthinkable has happened”, just before the Christmas break.
The reported shooting occurred near the Barus & Holley building, a seven-story complex that houses the university’s School of Engineering and physics department. According to the university’s website, the building includes more than 100 laboratories, dozens of classrooms and offices.
Engineering design exams were underway in the building when the shooting occurred.
President Donald Trump said late in the afternoon that he has been briefed on the shooting.
“God bless the victims and the families of the victims!” he said on his social media site.
Students were urged to shelter in place as police responded to the scene, and people were told to avoid the area. A police officer warned media to take cover in vehicles because the area was still an active scene.
Officials cautioned that information remained preliminary as investigators worked to determine what had occurred.
Police were actively investigating and still gathering information from the scene, said Kristy DosReis, the chief public information officer for the city of Providence. The FBI said it was assisting in the response.
Brown is a private institution with roughly 7300 undergraduate students and more than 3000 graduate students. Saturday was the second day of final exams for the fall semester.
