A mass shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in British Columbia claimed 9 lives and left at least 27 others injured, marking one of the deadliest incidents in recent Canadian history.
The attack unfolded in a remote mountain town at a school serving approximately 175 students, according to AFP.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers arrived within two minutes of the initial call, discovering seven deceased individuals on-site, including the shooter.
Authorities later found two more victims at a nearby residence linked to the perpetrator, and one additional victim succumbed to their injuries while being transported to the hospital.
Among the 27 injured, several were airlifted to trauma centres with life-threatening conditions.
The suspected perpetrator, identified as a woman, died from a self-inflicted injury.
RCMP Superintendent Ken Floyd confirmed that no further suspects are being sought, though the motive remains a mystery.
“We are not in a place now to be able to understand why or what may have motivated this tragedy,” Floyd noted, adding that investigators are still determining the connections between the suspect and the victims.
British Columbia Premier David Eby described the event as an “unimaginable tragedy” for the tight-knit Rocky Mountain community.
Prime Minister Mark Carney also expressed his devastation on social media, reflecting a national sense of shock.
Mass shootings of this scale are almost unheard of in Canada, a country with significantly stricter gun laws than the United States.
As the investigation continues, the remote town remains in mourning, shaken by a level of violence that has fundamentally altered the peace of the region.