A 14-year-old student fatally shot 4 people in a rampage at a Georgia high school, officials say

WINDER, Ga. (AP) — A 14-year-old student opened fire at a Georgia high school and killed four people on Wednesday, authorities said, sending students scrambling for shelter in their classrooms — and eventually to the football stadium — as officers swarmed the campus and parents raced to find out if their children were safe.

The dead were identified as two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Winder, about an hour’s drive from Atlanta. Killed were two other 14-year-olds, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, and instructors Richard Aspinwall and Christina Irimie, Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said in a nighttime news conference.

At least nine other people — eight students and one teacher — were taken to hospitals with injuries. All were expected to survive, Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said.

The words “hard lockdown” appeared on a screen in junior Layla Ferrell's health class and lights began flashing. She and her frightened classmates piled desks and chairs in front of the door to create a barricade, she recalled.

Sophomore Kaylee Abner was in geometry class when she heard the gunshots. She and her classmates ducked behind their teacher’s desk, and then the teacher began flipping the desk in an attempt to barricade the classroom door, Abner said. A classmate beside her was praying, and she held his hand while they all waited for police.

After students poured into the football stadium, Abner saw teachers who had taken off their shirts to help treat gunshot wounds.

Two school resource officers encountered the shooter within minutes after a report of shots fired went out, Hosey said. The suspect, a student at the school, immediately surrendered and was taken into custody. He is being charged as an adult with murder. Authorities said the weapon was an assault-style rifle.

The teen had been interviewed after the FBI received anonymous tips in May 2023 about online threats to commit an unspecified school shooting, the agency said in a statement.

The FBI narrowed the threats down and referred to the case to the sheriff’s department in Jackson County, which is adjacent to Barrow County.

The sheriff’s office interviewed the then-13-year-old and his father, who said there were hunting guns in the house but the teen did not have unsupervised access to them. The teen also denied making any online threats.

The sheriff’s office alerted local schools for continued monitoring of the teen, but there was no probable cause for arrest to additional action, the FBI said.

Hosey said the state Division of Family and Children’s Services also had previous contact with the teen and will investigate whether that has any connection with the shooting.

Authorities were still looking into how the suspect obtained the gun used in the shooting and got it into the school in Barrow County, a rapidly suburbanizing area on the edge of metro Atlanta's ever-expanding sprawl.

At an afternoon news conference, Smith choked up as he began to speak. He said he was born and raised in the community and his kids are in the school system.

“My heart hurts for these kids. My heart hurts for our community,” he said. “But I want to make it very clear that hate will not prevail in this county. I want that to be very clear and known. Love will prevail over what happened today.”

It was the the latest among dozens of school shootings across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in Newtown, Connecticut, Parkland, Florida, and Uvalde, Texas. The classroom killings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to active shooter drills in classrooms. But they have done little to move the needle on national gun laws.

Before Wednesday, there had been 29 mass killings in the U.S. so far this year, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University. At least 127 people have died in those killings, which are defined as incidents in which four or more people die within a 24-hour period, not including the killer — the same definition used by the FBI.

Last year ended with 217 deaths from 42 mass killings, making 2023 one of the deadliest years on record for such shootings in the country.

On Wednesday in Winder, Landon Culver, an 11th grader, said he had stepped out of his algebra class to get a drink of water when he heard shots and then saw someone wearing a black hoodie with a long gun.

“I didn’t really stick around too long to look,” he said.

Instead he ran back inside the classroom and locked the door. The class huddled in the back in the dark and waited for the rampage to end. Culver listened as gunshots rang out in the building.

“You’re just wondering like, which one of those is going to be somebody that you’re best friends with or somebody that you love?” he said.

Later police officers arrived and escorted the students out. As they were leaving the building, Culver saw “multiple people who had been shot.”

“You hear about this kind of stuff, but you like never think it’s going to happen to you until like it’s happening.”

When Erin Clark, 42, received a text from her son Ethan, a senior, saying there was an active shooter, she rushed from her job at the Amazon warehouse to the school. The two texted “I love you,” and Clark prayed for her him as she drove.

With the main road to the school blocked, she parked and ran with other parents. They were directed to the football field, and amid the chaos, Clark found Ethan sitting on the bleachers.

Clark said her son was writing an essay in class when he first heard gunfire. He worked with his classmates to barricade the door and hide.

“I’m so proud of him for doing that,” she said. “He was so brave.”

“It makes me scared to send him back,” Clark said. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

Traffic going to the school was backed up for more than a mile as parents tried to get to their children. Barrow County schools will be closed for the rest of the week as they cooperate with the investigation, but grief counseling will be available.

“It’s just outrageous that every day, in our country, in the United States of America, that parents have to send their children to school worried about whether or not their child will come home alive," Vice President Kamala Harris said during a campaign stop in New Hampshire.

In a message posted to social media, former President Donald Trump said: “These cherished children were taken from us far too soon by a sick and deranged monster.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who canceled a speech planned for the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas and returned to the state, said in a statement: “This is a day every parent dreads, and Georgians everywhere will hug their children tighter this evening because of this painful event.”

Apalachee High School opened in 2000 and has about 1,900 students, according to records from Georgia education officials.

On Wednesday evening, hundreds gathered in Jug Tavern Park in downtown Winder for a vigil. Volunteers handed out candles and also water, pizza and tissues. Some knelt as a Methodist minister led the crowd in prayer after a Barrow County commissioner read a Jewish prayer of mourning.

Some were clad in athletic gear from Apalachee’s crosstown rival, Winder-Barrow High School. At the end of the vigil, someone released balloons in Apalachee’s blue, gold and white.

Sophomore Shantal Sanvee, who was in a classroom near the gunshots, said she saw “a whole lot of blood. And it was just, it was just horrible.”

“I don't think I want to be here for like a long time now,” Sanvee said.

This story has been updated to correct the spelling of teacher Christina Irimie's first name and Richard Aspinwall's last name.

Associated Press journalists Sharon Johnson, Mike Stewart and Erik Verduzco in Winder; Beatrice Dupuy in New York; Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia; Charlotte Kramon, Kate Brumback and Jeff Martin in Atlanta, and Mark Thiessen in Anchorage, Alaska, contributed.

Dan Williamson prays during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Mourners pray during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Mourners pray during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Mourners hold candles during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Mark Gorman holds a candle during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Mourners listen to a speaker during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Mourners pray during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Mourners pray during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Brandy Rickaba and her daughter Emilie pray during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Students and parents walk off campus at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. A shooting at the Georgia high school Wednesday caused an unknown number of injuries and a suspect was arrested in a chaotic scene. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Students and parents walk off campus at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Students and parents walk off campus at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Students and parents walk off campus at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

People leave Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Students and parents walk off campus at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

People leave Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Students and parents walk off campus at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Parents walk their child out of Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

A medical helicopter is seen in front of Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

A medical helicopter is seen in front of Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Parents walk their child out of Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart

Parents walk their child out of Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

An ambulance departs Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Parents walk to Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Police gather outside Apalachee High School after a shooting at the school Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Police vehicles are seen outside Apalachee High School after a shooting there caused an unknown number of injuries and a suspect was arrested Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Ninth grader Jacob Fokuo describes the shooting at Apalachee High School, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Winder, Ga. A shooting at the Georgia high school Wednesday caused an unknown number of injuries and a suspect was arrested in a chaotic scene. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Law enforcement arrive as students are evacuated to the football stadium after the school campus was placed on lockdown at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga., on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)

Students are evacuated to the football stadium after the school campus was placed on lockdown at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga., on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. (WSB via AP)

Law enforcement arrive as students are evacuated to the football stadium after the school campus was placed on lockdown at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga., on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)

Students are evacuated to the football stadium after the school campus was placed on lockdown at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga., on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. (Erin Clark via AP)

Law enforcement arrive as students are evacuated to the football stadium after the school campus was placed on lockdown at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga., on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. (Erin Clark via AP)

Students are evacuated to the football stadium after the school campus was placed on lockdown at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga., on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. (Erin Clark via AP)

LEBANON, Tenn. (AP) — Alex Palou easily drove to his third IndyCar championship in four years when challenger Will Power's seatbelt came loose minutes into the season-deciding finale Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway.

Colton Herta, who earlier this year moved to Nashville, won the Music City Grand Prix for his first career victory on an oval and second win of the season for Andretti Global. Herta topped Pato O’Ward in a wheel-to-wheel battle in the closing laps.

“I couldn’t ask for a better ending to the year,” Herta said.

But all attention was on the championship race as Palou, a Spaniard who won his first title in 2021 in his first season driving for Chip Ganassi Racing, won back-to-back IndyCar titles.

“He never broke a sweat,” said team owner Ganassi, who celebrated his 16th IndyCar title in 29 years.

“I don't know too many guys who have three championships, not that many, but he's in pretty rarified air right now,” Ganassi continued. “His name has certainly got to be in the conversation of great drivers.”

Palou became just the 13th driver in IndyCar history to win at least three championships. He's just the seventh to win three titles in four years with Dario Franchitti — also for Ganassi — the last to do so from 2009 through 2011.

“I had no idea it would be this much fun or he would be this successful,” Ganassi said about signing Palou before the 2021 season.

At 27 years, 5 months, 14 days, Palou became the second-youngest driver to win three championships. Only Sam Hornish Jr. was younger at 27 years, 2 months, 8 days when he won his third title in 2006.

The competition for the crown was only between Palou and Power, the two-time champion from Australia who won his last title in 2022 sandwiched between Palou's run.

Power had two chances in the last two races to reclaim the crown but failed to capitalize both times. Palou had an engine issue two weeks ago at the Milwaukee Mile and Power was briefly in position to win the race until the Australian spun on his own and finished a disappointing 10th.

That allowed Palou to take a 33-point lead into Nashville, where the downtown street race had been shifted 35 miles away to the existing concrete oval because of construction on the Tennessee Titans' new stadium. Palou had never before raced on a concrete oval, while Power finished 11th in his only career race at the superspeedway, IndyCar's final visit in 2008.

But things began looking up for Power when Palou had a disastrous qualifying effort at 15th, and also had a nine-place penalty on the starting grid for an unapproved engine change. That dropped Palou to 24th for the start and Power, who qualified fourth, had erased Palou's lead to a meager seven points when the race began based on their current running positions.

It was still going to take a lot of work for Power to give Team Penske the title as Palou only needed to rally to a ninth-place finish to win the title no matter where Power finished. He wound up 11th in the race.

It had long been a moot point because on the 14th lap, Power's lap belt came undone.

“My belt, my belt has come off!” he shouted on his radio.

Power had to pit under green so his crew could get him safely buckled back correctly, and Power had dropped five laps off the pace by the time he got back on track.

By then, Palou's lead was back up to 46 points as he sliced his way through the field. He drove from 24th to 12th in about 30 laps, while Power had plummeted to last.

He said after the race the belt came loose a second time in the closing laps and it needs to be sent back to the manufacturer for inspection.

“I've never had that before,” Power said. “I want to give a big congrats to Alex, a tough guy to beat ever since he joined Ganassi. Happy with the season, we did well, but we want to win that championship and we'll come back next year.”

Power ultimately finished 24th in the 27 car field and dropped to fourth in the final standings. Herta jumped up to second and was followed by Scott McLaughlin, who finished third in the standings and ended the season as the highest-ranked Team Penske driver for the second consecutive year.

O'Ward finished second in the race and fifth in the overall standings, while Nashville native and two-time reigning Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden was third in the race but a distant eighth in the standings.

Scott Dixon finished 17th in the race, which dropped him to sixth in the overall standings. The six-time IndyCar champion had not finished lower than fifth in the standings since 2016.

Santino Ferrucci finished sixth in the race to and end up ninth in the final standings — the highest an AJ Foyt Racing car has ranked since 2002. But it wasn't an overall banner day for the team as Sting Ray Robb's 20th-place finish eliminated that car from IndyCar's leaders circle program.

The leaders circle program pays a monetary bonus to the top 22 teams in the final standings and many organizations depend on that cash to fund their season budgets. Robb's car — which will be driven next year by David Malukas — fell one point short of the leaders circle bonus.

The drivers who squeezed out the final spots were Pietro Fittipaldi for Rahal Letterman Lanigan and Christian Rasmussen, who at the last minute was given the final three races of the season at Ed Carpenter Racing in an effort to keep the car inside the money.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Pato O'Ward (5) and Colton Herta (26) drive during an IndyCar auto race Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Drives pass under the green flag as they start an IndyCar auto race Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Alex Palou drives during an IndyCar auto race Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Driver Alex Palou stands with his team before an IndyCar auto race Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Driver Will Power, right, greets fans before an IndyCar auto race Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Driver Alex Palou, right, greets fans before an IndyCar auto race Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)