Ten Fatalities Reported in Santa Fe, Texas School Shooting; Gunman Identified

Posted on May 18, 2018

UPDATE 2:10PM: Santa Fe, TX (AP) – Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says 10 people are dead and 10 more wounded after a shooting at a high school in the town of Santa Fe.

Abbott called Friday’s shooting “one of the most heinous attacks that we’ve ever seen in the history of Texas schools.”

He says explosive devices including a molotov cocktail that had been found in the suspected shooter’s home and a vehicle as well as around the school and nearby.

The governor says the suspect said he originally intended to commit suicide but gave himself up and told authorities that he didn’t have the courage to take his own life.

Abbott said there are “one or two” other people of interest being interviewed about the shooting.

 

UPDATE 1:15PM:  Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – Santa Fe High School officials say 8 to ten people were killed at the Houston-area high school and the suspected shooter is in custody.

Assistant Principal Cris Richardson says the suspect in the shooting Friday at Santa Fe High School was “arrested and secured” around 9:10 this morning, after the incident which began around 7:30.

The suspect has been identified as 17-year-old Dimitrios Pagourtzis.

Galveston County Sheriff’s Office Photo

The school district also confirmed an unspecified number of people are injured but provided no other details.

A witness told reporters that a person (believed to be a student) walked into the school and pulled the fire alarm, after that several shots were heard.

Multiple police agencies were on the scene as were a number of Life Flight helicopters.

Students are being transported to another location to reunite with their parents.

—

UPDATED 10:04AM – Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – Multiple media reports now say 8 students were killed in a school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas this morning.

According to witnesses, a person, presumed to be a student entered Sante Fe High School this morning around 7:30 and pulled the fire alarm, after which multiple gun shots were here. Some witnesses report hearing explosives.

Santa Fe, located southeast of Houston has about 13,000 residents.

—

UPDATED 9:48AM: Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – Multiple injuries have been reported in a school shooting incident in Santa Fe, TX.

A witness told reporters that a person (believed to be a student) walked into the Santa Fe High School around 7:30 this morning and pulled the fire alarm, after that several shots were heard.  Multiple police agencies were on the scene as were a number of Life Flight helicopters.

Santa Fe is a city of about 13,000 people roughly 30 miles southeast of Houston and 20 miles northwest of Galveston.

Meantime, multiple reporters caught up with a man who showed up near the scene armed and carrying a flag. The man, wearing a ‘Make America Great Again’ hat said that he justed wanted to show his support for the victims.

—

UPDATED 9:29AM:  Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – In Southeast Texas near Galveston, Santa Fe High Assistant principal Cris Richardson says a  shooter “has been arrested and secured.”

Officials say a gunman walked into an art class at at the school around 7:30 this morning and began firing what looked like a shotgun, according to a witness on CNN affiliate KTRK. The witness told KTRK she saw a girl shot in the leg.

Patients from the school are being taken to a hospital in the nearby city of Galveston, hospital spokesman Raul Reyes said. He did not say how many.

Aerial video from the scene showed several police officers outside the school. Some were searching students and their backpacks.

Angelica Martinez, a 14-year-old student, told CNN she and her schoolmates were being evacuated at one point “like it’s a fire drill.” “We were all standing (outside), but not even five minutes later, we started hearing gunshots,” she said. “I didn’t see anybody shooting, but like (the gunshots) were kind of spaced,” she said, adding she heard about four shots.

The entire school district is on lockdown, district officials said. Santa Fe is a city of about 13,000 people roughly 30 miles southeast of Houston and 20 miles northwest of Galveston.

—

UPDATED 9:18AM – Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – An assistant principal at Santa Fe High School in Texas told reporters that  a person has been taken into custody after opening fire at the school this morning. Dr. Cris Richarson would not confirm reports of injuries.

—

UPDATED 9:11AM – Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – Galveston County sheriff’s Maj. Douglas Hudson says units are responding to reports of shots fired at Santa Fe High School in Texas.

Santa Fe is a city of about 13,000 residents, located 30 miles (48 kilometers) southeast of Houston. One student told Houston television station KTRK in a telephone interview that a gunman came into her first-period art class and started shooting. The student says she saw one girl with blood on her leg as the class evacuated the room. Authorities have not yet confirmed that report.

—

UPDATED 9:03AM – Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – A gunman walked into an art class at Santa Fe High School and began firing what looked like a shotgun, a witness told CNN affiliate KRTK. The witness told KTRK she saw a girl shot in the leg.

The school district is on lockdown, district officials said. Authorities in Texas we responding to the scene of a reported active shooter at a high school.

—

UPDATED 9:01AM – Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – A Houston TV station has tweeted that one person is in custody in connection with a shooting at Santa Fe High School outside of Houston this morning.

—

Original post:

Santa Fe, TX (WBAP/KLIF) – An active shooting is being confirmed at a Texas Gulf Coast high school. Santa Fe Independent School District says someone started shooting this morning and the district is now on lockdown. They’re promising to release more information as soon as possible. Santa Fe is about 30 miles southeast of Houston.

Westwood One reports at least one student says she saw her friend get shot.

Life Flight and multiple police agencies have been called to the scene.

Keep checking back for more updatesl

Copyright 2018. WBAP/KLIF News. All Rights Reserved.