A 14-year-old student fatally shot 4 people in a rampage at a Georgia high school

WINDER, Ga. (AP) — A 14-year-old student opened fire at a Georgia high school and killed

four people on Wednes- day, authorities said, send –

ing students scrambling for shelter in their class – rooms – and eventually to the football stadium – as officers swarmed the campus and parents raced to find out if their children were safe.

The dead were identi – fied as two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Wind – er, about an hour’s drive from Atlanta. At least nine other people were taken to hospitals with injuries.

The words “hard lock – down” appeared on a screen in junior Layla Ferrell’s health class and lights began flashing. She and her frightened class – mates piled desks and chairs in front of the door to create a barricade, she recalled.

Sophomore Kaylee Ab –

ner was in geometry class when she heard the gun – shots. She and her class – mates ducked behind their teacher’s desk, and then the teacher began flipping the desk in an attempt to barricade the classroom door, Abner said. A class – mate beside her was pray – ing, and she held his hand while they all waited for police.

After students poured into the football stadium, Abner saw teachers who had taken off their shirts to help treat gunshot wounds.

Two school resource officers encountered the shooter within minutes af – ter a report of shots fired went out, Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said. The suspect, a student at the school, immediately sur – rendered and was taken into custody. He is being charged as an adult with murder.

Authorities were still looking into how the sus – pect obtained the gun used in the shooting and got it into the school in Barrow County, about 50 miles northeast of Atlanta. At an afternoon news confer –

ence, officials would not say what type of gun was

used.

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith choked up as he began to speak during the briefing. He said he was born and raised in the community and his kids are in the school system.

“My heart hurts for these kids. My heart hurts for our community,” he said. “But I want to make it very clear that hate will not prevail in this county. I want that to be very clear and known. Love will pre – vail over what happened today.” It was the latest among dozens of school shoot – ings across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in Newtown, Conn., Park –

land, Fla., and Uvalde, Texas. The classroom kill – ings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accus – tomed to active shooter drills in classrooms. But they have done little to move the needle on na – tional gun laws.

Before Wednesday, there had been 29 mass killings in the U.S. so far this year, according to a database maintained by The As – sociated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University.