Connecticut State Police lead children from the Sandy Hook
Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., following a reported shooting there
today.
A crazed gunman dressed in black went on a rampage at a
Connecticut elementary school this morning, in a massacre that left the
shooter and 26 dead others - including 20 children - and the number of
fatalities could rise.
Adam Lanza, 20, shot his mother Nancy Lanza
dead at their family home before driving to the school and targeting
her kindergarten class at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown,
Conn., sources said. Sources also told The Post that Lanza's mother was a
teacher at the school and he "had a dispute with her."
Lanza was found dead inside the school from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, an official told the AP.
Principal
Dawn Hochsprung is among those killed. CBS 2 is reporting that teacher
Natalie Hammond, 40, is in surgery and is expected to survive.
Lanza
used two handguns — a Glock and a Sig Sauer — and a .223-caliber
assault rifle, an official said. An official also said Lanza's
girlfriend and another friend are missing in New Jersey.
Police in Hoboken are questioning Lanza's older brother Ryan, 24, but he is not a suspect.
GUNMAN'S RAMPAGE TOOK ONLY MINUTES, COP RADIO CALLS REVEAL
EMOTIONAL OBAMA: CHILD VICTIMS 'HAD THEIR ENTIRE LIVES AHEAD OF THEM'
HISTORY OF MASS SHOOTINGS - TODAY'S ATTACK AMONG WORLD'S DEADLIEST
The shooter was found with an ID that bore his brother's name, a
law-enforcement source said, but there is no indication that it was
stolen. A source told The Post Ryan has told investigators he last saw
Adam in 2010 and that Adam is autistic.
Ryan Lanza has a Facebook page that posted updates Friday afternoon that read that "it wasn't me" and "I was at work."
The
shooting appeared to be the nation's second-deadliest school shooting,
exceeded only by the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007, which left 32
people and the gunman dead.
Heartwrenching dispatch calls reveal that Lanza's rampage took only minutes.
The first word of the horrifying Newtown school shooting went out over the town's police radio at 9:36 this morning.
At
9:46 a.m., as police searched the school, someone who could not hide
the emotion in his voice radioed these haunting words: "I've got bodies
here. Need ambulances."
Robert Licata said his 6-year-old son was in class when the gunman burst in and shot the teacher.
"That's
when my son grabbed a bunch of his friends and ran out the door," he
said. "He was very brave. He waited for his friends."
He said the shooter didn't utter a word.
"We
were in my art teacher's room. We heard some gunshots – like 20. Then
the police came with guns and told us to close our eyes," said
fourth-grader Venesa Bajraliu, 9.
"I heard gunshots and I saw
policemen. My teacher was scared and a little shaky. We went into the
office and police came and took us into the firehouse."
She heard screams and gunshots over the intercom of the school, said her brother, Nergim, 17.
Nergim and his mother were the first to arrive at the school. He saw three young victims, who appeared wounded.
"When I saw the girl come out with police, the girl was splattered with blood."
An emotional President Obama addressed the nation this afternoon.
"Our
hearts are broken today for the parents, grandparents, sisters and
brothers of these little children and for the families of the adults who
were lost," a teary-eyed Obama said.
Obama also expressed his
grief for the parents of survivors, who in a scene of mass chaos, rushed
to a nearby firehouse to pick up their children.
"Our hearts are
broken for the parents of the survivors as well, for as blessed as they
are to have their children at home tonight, they know that their
children's innocence has been torn away from them too early. There are
no words that will ease their pain."
Mom Carrie Battaglia told The Post that the firehouse where she was told to pick up her children was in a state of chaos.
REUTERS
President Obama speaks about the shooting.
"It's a mob scene," said Battaglia, 39, whose daughters, 6 and
8, attend the school. She said teachers were handing out water and
crackers.
"We're just thankful our kids our OK, " Battaglia said between tears. "I wouldn't think anything like this would ever happen."
Her husband, David Battaglia, said, "It's intense — people are trying to find their children."
Jennifer
Belward said her three- and four-year-old children were at the
Children's Adventure Center preschool next door to the elementary
school.
"They put them on lockdown and they were sitting in their
cubbies eating pizza and watching a movie," she said, as she walked
hand-in-hand with them up Riverside Road.
She said her children were unaware of what happened.
Joanne Didonato, the principal's secretary, said she called in sick today - something she rarely does.
"Of
all days," she said. "I want to go be with my colleagues. I'm sick over
the news. I've been on the phone with some people but they don't know.
Everything is just up in the air right now, I know nothing."
REUTERS
A young boy is comforted outside Sandy Hook Elementary School after today's shooting.
"They're saying children are killed. I just can't handle that.
We have great kids in our school and I'm just so upset over that."
According
to a witness report, the school's principal and another staffer were
killed while another staffer was shot in the leg after a gunman opened
fire in a hallway.
A witness said gunshots were heard in the
hallway during a meeting and that "100 rounds" must have been fired,
according to CNN. After the shots were fired, three people ran into the
hallway but only the vice principal crawled back.
Cops responded
to reports of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary just after 9:40
a.m., and said the gunman was in the school's main office, according to
reports.
The newspaper reports that as of 11 a.m., police were still searching the school with dogs.
New York News | NYC Breaking News
Parents told the Hartford Courant that
some students were still in the school at 10:30 a.m. Groups of
students, some crying and holding hands, were seen were being escorted
away from the school by their teachers.
One child leaving the
facility told the newspaper that there was shattered glass everywhere. A
police officer ran into the classroom and told them to run outside and
keep going until the reach the firehouse, according to the report.
Three people from the scene were taken to Danbury Hospital, a hospital spokeswoman told NBC. The hospital is on lockdown.
"There are no visitors allowed today. This hospital is on lockdown. Nobody is getting in or out," one officer told The Post.
"We
grieve for all the people in our community afffected by today's
tragedy. We offer our heartfelt sympathy and prayers to all involved,"
said Dr John Murphy president and CEO of Western Connecticut Health
Network.
"This is our home, this is where we live. We are here,
we are open and no longer on lock down as we were earlier in the day. We
are fully operational to provide any and all care and support for the
people who need us today as well as those who will need us in the days
to come."
Murphy said that the shooting was the most traumatic
event he has "ever experienced or considered. It's unthinkable and we're
all hurting here."
Earlier, Danbury Hospital posted a statement
to their Facebook page: "We are here to care for any victims and their
families in any way they need us. Our hearts and prayers are extended to
anyone involved in this terrible tragedy. To date, three patients have
been transported to Danbury Hospital from the scene. Out of abundance of
caution and not because of any direct threat Danbury Hospital is under
lockdown. This allows us simply to focus on the important work at hand.
We will keep you apprised of any additional information as details are
confirmed."
The seven schools in the district were in lockdown mode, said Kathy June, of the Newtown Public School District.
Stephen
Delgiadice said his 8-year-old daughter heard two big bangs and
teachers told her to get in a corner. His daughter was fine.
AP
A woman waits to hear about her sister, a teacher, following the shooting.
"It's alarming, especially in Newtown, Connecticut, which we always thought was the safest place in America," he said.
Brenda Lebinski, whose 8-year-old daughter attends the school, was among the parents who raced to check on their children.
"I saw her and it was the happiest moment of my life," she said.
Connecticut's governor was on the scene in Newtown.
Ambulances
surrounded the school, about 60 miles northeast of of New York, and
parents were running toward the building as a helicopter flew overhead.
State police said Newtown police called them around 9:40 a.m. A SWAT team was among the throngs of police to respond.
A
photo posted by The Newtown Bee newspaper showed a group of young
students — some crying, others looking visibly frightened — being
escorted by adults through a parking lot in a line, hands on each
other's shoulders.
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