Apalachee High School is located in Winder, about 45 minutes northeast of Atlanta.
Nine other people at Apalachee High School in Winder - about an hour outside of Atlanta — were hospitalized with gunshot wounds, including a math teacher who was left with a shattered hip. At least two victims were airlifted to a hospital.
One terrified survivor described how the gunman stopped and pounded on his barricaded classroom door and demanded "open up!" before moving on.
Other students texted their parents and begged for help, telling them they loved them and that they were scared for their lives.
The suspected gunman — identified as Colt Gray, a student at the school - surrendered immediately after a school resource officer rushed in and confronted him — just minutes after the first shots were fired around 10:20 a.m., Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said.
Gray was unharmed, and will be charged with murder as an adult, Horsey added.
"My heart hurts for these kids, my heart hurts for our community, but I want to make it very clear that hate will not prevail in this county," Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said.
"I want that to be very clear and known." he added. "Love will prevail over what happened today."
Police have been interviewing Gray, and are also in touch with his family.
At least four people are dead and 30 are injured after a shooting Wednesday morning at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia.
"None that I'm aware of," Barrow County Sheriff Smith responded when asked.
The shooting left students terrified and ducking for cover in locked-down classes, and one sending off desperate messages to his parents.
"School shooting RN ... I'm scared ... I'm not joking," Apalachee senior Ethan Clark texted his mother, Erin Clark at 10:23 a.m., according to a post on her Facebook.
"I love you." the boy told his as his mother.
"Love you too baby," she responded as she told him she was leaving work and rushing to get him.
When she asked where he was, he responded: "Class. Someone's dead."
When she got to the school she eventually found Ethan with his evacuated classmates, and learned that he had been writing an essay when the shooting began. He quickly worked with another student to barricade the doors.
"I'm so proud of him for doing that," Clark said. "He was so brave."
Another boy, 14-year-old Marques Coleman, said he was in one of the classrooms where the shooter opened fire.
He recalled the classroom filling with smoke and wounded friends splayed across the room after the shooter left, including one who he said was bleeding badly from the stomach.
"God had his hands around me," he told WPRI.
Seventeen-year-old Apalachee senior Sergio Caldera told ABC News that he was in chemistry class when he heard gunshots.
"My teacher goes and opens the door to see what's going on. Another teacher comes running in and tells her to close the door because there's an active shooter," he said.
Caldera's teacher locked the door and the students ran to the back of the room, he recalled. Then they heard screams from outside as they huddled together.
At one point, Caldera said, someone banged on the classroom door and yelled "Open up!" several times. When the knocking stopped, Caldera heard more gunshots and screaming.
Sophomore football player Jacob King had dozed off in class after a morning practice, when he was shaken awake by the sound of about 10 gunshots.
He said he didn't believe what was happening until an officer was heard yelling at someone to put down their gun. Later when they were evacuated, his classmates saw officers shielding what appeared to be a wounded student.
Apalachee special-ed math teacher David Phenix was among the injured - with gun shot wounds to the foot and hip that left him hospitalized, according to his daughter.
"My dad was shot in the foot and in the hip, shattering his hip bone," Katie Phenix wrote on Facebook.
"He arrived to the hospital alert and awake. He just got out of surgery and is stable," she added.
"We are asking for your patience ... please let us get the facts that we need to make sure we get this right," Smith told reporters.
"This is going to take multiple days for us to get answers as to what happened and why this happened."
"What you see behind us is evil," he added, referring to the chaotic scene around the high school campus.
Law enforcement had secured the scene and students were being released by around 11:30 a.m., a spokesperson for the Barrow County School District told The Post at the time.
There were dozens of police vehicles from multiple agencies on the lawns outside the high school as officers organized students in the athletic field area, FOX5 reported.
Some other victims were taken to hospitals in Atlanta.
"I have directed all available state resources to respond to the incident at Apalachee High School and urge all Georgians to join my family in praying for the safety of those in our classrooms, both in Barrow County and across the state," Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said.
"We will continue to work with local, state, and federal partners as we gather information and further respond to this situation."
The White House confirmed that President Biden was briefed on the matter.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a press conference that the Justice Department was ready to assist Georgia authorities with the investigation.
"We are still gathering information, but the FBI and ATF are on the scene working with state, local and federal partners," Garland explained, adding that he was "devastated for the families who have been affected by this terrible tragedy."
Apalachee High School was cleared for dismissal, and other schools in the county were on a "soft lockdown," ABC News reported, citing the school district.
"The Barrow County Sheriff's Office says this is for the safety of everyone right now. Please do not visit your child's school at this time. We cannot release students during a lockdown," the school district said in a statement. "We will let you know as soon as BCSO says it is all clear for dismissal."
Reader Comments
But if I can wager a guess, he was on antidepressants and ADHD drugs like Ritalin for years.
but he became extremely unruly, Abusive tantrums.. He couldn’t make friends , couldn’t be taken out in public. As a last resort his parents got him checked out.. He was given a Ritalin type drug.. He is now 15 and doing well… I know there can be side effects and it isn’t good for everyone.. but it has helped lots of kids.