Shooting at Great Mills High School in Maryland, America, ‘leaves seven injured’
Seven people have been reportedly injured at a high school shooting in Maryland, America, on Tuesday morning.
A witness said the shooting at Great Mills High School begun shortly after 8.15am, just after school started.
Emergency services were said to have arrived on the scene within five minutes of the incident beginning.
The school, which is around 70 miles south of Washington DC, normally has police officers on site, according to one student.
Local police issued a statement around 8.30am saying “there has been an incident” at Great Mills High School.
They urged students to stay away from Great Mills and instead go to a nearby school, where the children will be taken.
There is no official word yet on the number of casualties.
Larry Hogan, the governor of Maryland, wrote on Twitter: “We are closely monitoring the situation at Great Mills High School.
“Maryland State Police is in touch with local law enforcement and ready to provide support. Our prayers are with students, school personnel, and first responders."
Jonathan Freese, a student, gave an account of the shooting as he called the broadcaster CNN from one of the school’s classrooms while in lockdown.
He said seven people had been injured and that the shooting took place shortly after school started at 8.15am.
"I'm still a little shaken up," Mr Freese said. He added that “we have police [stationed] at this school and they’re ready for this”.
The scale of the incident and details of the shooter were initially unclear.
The incident comes a month after 17 died at a shooting in Parkland, Florida in what was America’s worst high school shooting.
On Saturday, thousands of students from across the country will be gathering in Washington DC for a ‘March For Our Lives’ rally calling for gun reform.
A statement posted on Facebook by Maryland State Police read: "From the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office, there has been a school shooting at Great Mills High School. The Sheriff's Office is on scene and the scene is contained."
More to follow.
