Mass Murders Hit Parkland School
Another mass shooting has rocked the United States of America as a young student launched a deadly shooting rampage inside the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killing 17 people.
The horrific incident took place when students went out from their classrooms after the suspect pulled the fire alarm. When some students and teachers rushed out of the building, the massacre began.
The suspect, 19-year-old former student Nikolas Cruz, fired a semiautomatic AR-15 rifle without mercy at students and anybody he came across inside the building.
The tragedy is considered to be the eighth deadliest mass shooting in contemporary US history. In addition, the mass murders in Parkland school are one of at least eight US school shootings so far in 2018 that have caused injury or death.
The Victims
The shooting led to the death of 17 people. Twelve were killed inside the building, two outside and one in the street. An additional two people shot at the school died after they were hospitalized. Twelve of those killed have been identified, police said on Wednesday evening.
Authorities feared the death toll may rise as some sustained wounds in the attack. Fifteen victims remain in hospital: five in a life-threatening condition and 10 with injuries that are not life-threatening.
These are the names of the victims:
- Alyssa Alhadeff, soccer player, 14
- Scott Beigel, teacher
- Martin Duque Anguiano
- Nicholas Dworet, star swimmer
- Aaron Feis, football coach
- Jaime Guttenberg, student
- Chris Hixon, athletic director
- Luke Hoyer, student
- Cara Loughran, student
- Gina Montalto, student
- Joaquin Oliver, student
- Alaina Pett, student
- Meadow Pollack, student
- Helena Ramsay, student
- Alex Schachter, student
- Carmen Schentrup, student
- Peter Wang, student
The Suspect
Nikolas Cruz was a former student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. The gunman was expelled for unspecified disciplinary reasons. Many say the suspect had reportedly been receiving treatment for mental health issues.
Local media report that Mr Cruz bought his gun, an AR-15, legally and kept it locked away in the house of the family he was staying with.
Neighbours and friends said Mr Cruz was known to shoot at chickens, and talk about shooting lizards, squirrels and frogs.
Aside from that, the local police have discovered disturbing background about the suspect.
Sheriff Israel said, “We have already begun to dissect his websites and things on social media that he was on and some of the things … are very, very disturbing.”
