The reportedly second school shooting this calendar year and first of the new school year resulted in two students and two teachers killed and at least another nine injured.
The shooting at Apalachee High School, located near Winder, Georgia, occurred a little over a month after the first day of school, with the motive still unknown. Mason Schermerhom, 14, and Christian Angulo, 14, were identified as the students killed. Teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53, were also killed.
Nine additional people, eight students and one teacher, were injured and taken to various hospitals. Media reports indicated they are expected to recover.
School Transportation News reached out to the district for more information such as transportation’s involvement in student evacuation and reunification but had not heard back at this writing.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) stated that Barrow County authorities were notified on Wednesday at around 10:20 a.m. of an active shooter at Apalachee High School. Within minutes, law enforcement was on scene. The 14-year-old shooter surrendered immediately and was taken into custody. The teen allegedly made threats online, which included photos of guns.
GBI said the boy has been charged with four counts of felony murder, with more charges expected. He was taken to the Gainsville Regional Youth Detention Center but GBI said during a press conference on scene that he will be charged as an adult.
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GBI added there is no evidence to suggest there were multiple shooters or that more schools are being targeted. All Barrow County Schools are closed Thursday and Friday. The district is offering counselors at the central office.
The first school shooting of 2024 took place in Perry, Iowa, where one student and one principal were killed. Max Christensen, father of two students who were at the school during the shooting and the recently retired state director of student transportation at the Iowa Department of Education, spoke about his experience and lessons learned for student transporters in June at STN EXPO East in Indianapolis, Indiana.
