Six kids, three adults recovering in hospital after Minneapolis school shooting

(NewsNation) — Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis remained closed Thursday as officials continued to investigate a shooting that left two children dead and 17 people injured.

Interim CEO of Hennepin Healthcare Thomas Klemond said Thursday that the hospital is currently treating nine victims, including six children and three adults. Two people, one adult and one child, are in serious condition, and another child is in critical condition.

EMS Chief Marty Scherer said there was one child who received a “shotgun blast to his back” while covering and protecting a fellow student. He also said he and his team began transporting wounded victims as soon as they arrived on the scene.

“I think we transported the first patient within less than 10 minutes of the time the call came in,” he said. “I think we were done transporting people after 25 minutes of the call coming in.”

Police said a gunman approached the school’s church around 8 a.m. local time and began shooting into the building, as children and adults gathered for Mass marking the start of the school day.

The children killed were 8 and 10 years old, according to officials. All the injured parishioners are expected to survive.

“These beautiful children at Annunciation, they should not have to go through this right now. They should be learning math and playing at recess and messing around in a cafeteria and playing with their friends. That’s what childhood is about,” said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.

Fourteen of the wounded victims were children, ranging in age from 6 to 15. Three octogenarian parishioners were also wounded but expected to survive, authorities said.

‘My friend Victor, like, saved me’: 10-year-old student

As schoolchildren, parents and teachers listened to a psalm on the third day of the new school year, just moments before the congregants were to proclaim “Alleluia,” bullets blasted through the windows.

“Down! Everybody down!” someone shouted, as children ducked for cover behind wooden pews from a barrage of gunfire. One student threw himself on top of a friend and was shot in the back. People used a wooden plank to barricade a door and fled to a gymnasium.

Sixth grader Chloe Francoual raced down a set of stairs and left behind a classmate in the rush before hiding in a room with a table barricading the door. She’d later tell her father that she thought she was going to die.

The shooting went on for several minutes, a man living near the church told the Associated Press. He said he heard as many as 50 shots.

The student whose friend had shielded him, fifth grader Weston Halsne, told reporters in the aftermath outside the church that he sat just a few feet from the windows shattered by the blasts.

“My friend Victor, like, saved me, though, because he laid on top of me,” 10-year-old Weston said. “He’s really brave, and I hope he’s good in the hospital.”

Minnesota gunman had ‘manifesto’ but no ‘specific’ motive

The shooter, identified by authorities as 23-year-old Robin Westman, died on the scene.

The weapons used in the attack were purchased legally, and gun magazines had phrases such as “Kill Donald Trump” and “Where is your God?” written on them, according to police.

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara told NewsNation on Thursday that authorities executed search warrants at the church and three homes, but nothing found was helpful in identifying a “specific motive.”

He said state and federal authorities were working to comb through hundreds of pages of documents belonging to Westman, finding “some very disturbing writings, and a whole lot of hate” so far.

Authorities “have not been able to identify a specific motive, a specific reason or a specific triggering event” that would’ve caused Westman to target the school, he told NewsNation.

Westman, who changed names in 2017 from Robert to Robin, had “some sort of manifesto that was timed to come out on YouTube,” O’Hara said Wednesday.

That video has since been taken down, and investigators were examining the footage.

Photos: Candlelight vigils held for Minnesota shooting victims

White House reacts to Minnesota shooting

President Donald Trump has not yet commented on the reported messages referencing him, but he called Wednesday’s shooting “tragic” and ordered flags at half-staff until Sunday at sunset.

First lady Melania Trump also weighed in, calling for more action to stop school shootings.

“To prevent future tragedies, it is crucial we look into behavioral threat assessments across all levels of society — beginning in our homes, extending through school districts and of course, social media platforms, she wrote on social media. “Being aware of these warning signs and acting quickly can save lives and make American communities safer.”

FBI Director Kash Patel called the shooting an “act of terrorism and a hate crime targeting Catholics,” though the Minneapolis police chief has said several times there has been no conclusion on a motive.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.