Update, 12:19pm EST:
The armed student who shot two other students at Great Mills High School in Maryland Tuesday morning has died, St. Mary's County Sheriff Tim Cameron says.
The school resource officer reportedly engaged the shooter in a hallway just before classes began. The officer fired a round at the shooter, with the shooter firing a round back, Cameron said. The officer was not injured and the shooter was later pronounced dead. A 14-year-old male student is in stable condition and a 16-year-old female student is in critical condition.
"On this day we realized our worst nightmare," Cameron said. "The notion of 'it can't happen here' is no longer a notion."
This is the 17th school shooting in the US since January 1.
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Great Mills High School in St. Mary's County, Maryland is on lockdown after a shooting, authorities say.
Three people were injured, possibly including the shooter, according to Andrew Ponti, an official with the county's public information office. No fatalities have been reported yet. The students were on lockdown but are now being evacuated from Great Mills to a reunification center at a nearby high school, CNN reports.
Here's a look from the scene outside Great Mills High School in Great Mills, Maryland, which is currently on lockdown after a shooting at the school, St. Mary's County Public Schools says https://t.co/O0tm9C2l8X pic.twitter.com/2dJ05pghF6
— CNN (@CNN) March 20, 2018
Jonathan Freese, a student at Great Mills High School, says he's currently on lockdown inside his math class. https://t.co/kHK10M95df
— Meg Wagner (@megwagner) March 20, 2018
the bell hasn't even rung for 1st and the whole great mills is on lockdown
— JOAN (@MELANINROE) March 20, 2018
Just six days ago, students at the high school had joined the nationwide walkout to protest gun violence in schools following the deadly Stonemason High shooting in Parkland, Florida.
Students @GMHS_SMCPS Great Mills High School joined tens of thousands of students nationwide for the #NationalSchoolWalkout to protest gun violence. @thebaynetcom will have the full story. pic.twitter.com/1TsG0T1EnO
— Joy Shrum (@JoyShrumTBN) March 14, 2018
"I didn't really expect for this to happen. I do always feel safe, though, because they always have police at the school," Great Mills student Jonathan Freese told CNN.
Elected officials, including the state's governor, have reacted on Twitter:
We are closely monitoring the situation at Great Mills High School. @MDSP is in touch with local law enforcement and ready to provide support. Our prayers are with students, school personnel, and first responders.
— Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) March 20, 2018
I'm closely monitoring reports of an incident at Great Mills High School in St. Mary's County. My prayers are with the students, parents, and teachers. Please follow instruction from local law enforcement responding on the scene. https://t.co/1zsRh8W7n8
— Steny Hoyer (@WhipHoyer) March 20, 2018
This post will be updated with new developments.
Image via Getty