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At least 19 children, 2 adults dead after shooting at elementary school

ABC News logo ABC News 5/25/2022
At least 18 students, 2 adults dead after shooting at Texas school
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At least 19 children and two teachers are dead after a shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.

The 18-year-old suspect, a student at Uvalde High School, is also dead, Gov. Greg Abbott said.

Abbott said the suspect "shot and killed horrifically and incomprehensibly" more than a dozen students and a teacher.

Adults comfort a girl crying outside the civic center in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022, following a shooting at an elementary school. © Allison Dinner/AFP via Getty Images Adults comfort a girl crying outside the civic center in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022, following a shooting at an elementary school.

The shooter was identified by law enforcement sources and the governor as Salvador Ramos. Authorities have recovered an AR-15-style rifle and numerous magazines, multiple law enforcement sources told ABC News.

The suspect, who was wearing body armor, was immediately engaged outside the building as he approached the school by a Uvalde Independent School District police officer, who was shot by the suspect, the sources said.

The students shot were mainly third- and fourth-graders, and one teacher, according to the sources.

Authorities initially said the suspect also allegedly shot and killed his grandmother at a separate scene before entering the school and again opening fire. ABC News later learned that his grandmother is in critical condition but alive.

After the first shooting, the suspect then crashed his car outside the elementary school, according to multiple law enforcement officials.

U.S. Border Patrol Agents responded to a law enforcement request for assistance, and Uvalde ISD officers and Border Patrol Tactical Unit agents traded fire with the suspect inside the building.

Two responding police officers were among those injured, Abbott said. They are expected to survive, he said. One of the Border Patrol agents sustained injuries while trying to protect students and is at the hospital recovering, Del Rio Sector Chief Jason D. Owens told ABC News.

"When parents drop their kids off at school, they have every expectation to know that they're going to be able to pick their child up when that school day ends. And there are families who are in mourning right now," Abbott said. "The state of Texas is in mourning with them for the reality that these parents are not going to be able to pick up their children."

Children get on a school bus as law enforcement personnel guard the scene of a suspected shooting near Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. © Marco Bello/Reuters Children get on a school bus as law enforcement personnel guard the scene of a suspected shooting near Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022.

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Uvalde Memorial Hospital had said 15 students were being treated in the hospital's emergency department in the wake of the incident. Two patients were transferred to San Antonio for treatment, while a third was pending transfer, the hospital said. A 45-year-old was also hospitalized after getting grazed by a bullet, the hospital said.

University Health in San Antonio said it had two patients from the shooting incident -- a 66-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl -- both in critical condition.

MORE: Biden addresses nation on 'horrific' Texas school shooting

Two adult victims of the shooting, both in critical condition, are also being treated at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, according to an Army official.

A number of the shooting victims are children of Customs and Border Patrol agents, law enforcement sources told ABC News.

Law enforcement personnel guard the scene of a suspected shooting near Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. © Marco Bello/Reuters Law enforcement personnel guard the scene of a suspected shooting near Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022.

Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin did not confirm casualties, but told ABC News in a text message that "this is a very bad situation." He said the office is trying to contact parents before releasing any information.

Earlier, the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District had said a shooter was located at Robb Elementary School and asked people to stay away from the area.

Law enforcement shared this photo of 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, a student at Uvalde High School, who has been identified as the alleged gunman in the Robb Elementary School shooting on May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. © Obtained by ABC News Law enforcement shared this photo of 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, a student at Uvalde High School, who has been identified as the alleged gunman in the Robb Elementary School shooting on May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas.

"There is an active shooter at Robb Elementary," the school district said on Twitter. "Law enforcement is on site. Your cooperation is needed at this time by not visiting the campus. As soon as more information is gathered it will be shared."

A school official initially told ABC News that the shooting took place off campus, and that Robb Elementary School was under lockdown.

Police walk near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. © Dario Lopez-mills/AP Police walk near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas.

The shooting occurred shortly after 11:30 a.m. local time, police said.

The school, which has students in the second, third and fourth grades, informed parents shortly after 2 p.m. that students had been transported to the Sgt. Willie Deleon Civic Center, the reunification site, and could be picked up.

Parent Ryan Ramirez told San Antonio ABC affiliate KSAT he had gone to the civic center and the elementary school trying to find his fourth grade daughter in the wake of the shooting.

"[I'm] just confused and worried. I'm trying to find out where my baby's at," he told the station.

A board with the list of classes/teachers is displayed outside the Ssgt Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transported from Robb Elementary School to be picked up after a suspected shooting, in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. © Marco Bello/Reuters A board with the list of classes/teachers is displayed outside the Ssgt Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transported from Robb Elementary School to be picked up after a suspected shooting, in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. Law enforcement personnel guard the scene of a suspected shooting near Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. © Marco Bello/Reuters Law enforcement personnel guard the scene of a suspected shooting near Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022.

Uvalde, Texas, is located about 90 minutes west of San Antonio.

The Bexar County Sheriff's Office and San Antonio Police Department are sending aid, and the FBI is responding.

Map of Robb Elementary School Shooting, Uvalde Texas © ABC News / Map tiles by Google Earth Map of Robb Elementary School Shooting, Uvalde Texas

The Houston Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also said it is assisting in the investigation.

MORE: 50% jump in active-shooter incidents from 2020 to 2021: FBI

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has been briefed on the situation and the agency "is actively coordinating with federal, state, and local partners," a spokesperson said. Customs and Border Protection officials in the area also responded to the scene.

People react outside the Staff Sgt Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transported from Robb Elementary School after a shooting, in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. © Marco Bello/Reuters People react outside the Staff Sgt Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transported from Robb Elementary School after a shooting, in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022.

The National Counterterrorism Operations Center believes there is "no known terrorism nexus" at this time, according to a law enforcement bulletin obtained by ABC News.

ABC News' Pierre Thomas, Luke Barr, Aaron Katersky, Jack Date, Nicholas Kerr and Mireya Villarreal contributed to this report.

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