This article was published as news of the shooting broke. Some of the details, including numbers of victims, may no longer be accurate.
Police say an 18-year-old Texas man shot and killed 14 elementary school children and one teacher in a shooting in Uvalde, Texas on Tuesday afternoon.
Salvador Romas, 18, a resident of Uvalde, reportedly abandoned his truck outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, and entered the school with a handgun. In a press conference, Texas Governor Greg Abbott said that Romas “shot and killed horrifically, incomprehensibly, 14 students, and killed a teacher,” and suggested he may have also had a rifle on his person when he allegedly launched his attack.
According to analysis from USNews, Robb Elementary has a student population of almost 90% Hispanic or Latino students, with 84% of all students coming from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
After a shoot-out with the authorities, Ramos was also shot and killed, despite a previous post from Uvalde Police Department declaring that he had been taken into custody at 1:06 p.m. local time. “Two responding officers were struck by rounds, but have no serious injuries,” Abbott confirmed.
In the press conference, Abbott also stated that Ramos had shot his grandmother. A 66-year-old woman is currently in critical condition at a local hospital, reportedly along with other wounded, including a child. According to Maverick County Sheriff Tom Schmerber, Ramos had a girlfriend who also resides in town.
Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) says 18-year-old male shooter "shot and killed, horrifically, incomprehensibly, 14 students, and killed a teacher" at Uvalde, TX elementary school.
The number of deaths has not been confirmed by other local and state authorities. pic.twitter.com/tJGdWKwQ0c
— The Recount (@therecount) May 24, 2022
“Texans across the state are grieving for the victims of this senseless crime and for the community of Uvalde,” Abbott said later in a statement. “I have instructed the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Rangers to work with local law enforcement to fully investigate this crime.”
An Instagram account allegedly owned by Ramos, @salv8dor_, was identified online, before being removed by the social media site. The account followed students at Uvalde High School. Screenshots have also appeared allegedly depicting chatlogs between Ramos and another individual. An alleged TikTok account, with the same handle, has the bio “kids be scared irl.”
Shooter posted this 3 days ago, tagged a random person, blurred for that persons safety. pic.twitter.com/uiZvT4aZE5
— Doge (@IntelDoge) May 24, 2022
Shooters TikTok before it was removed. pic.twitter.com/CsDjN5QTDK
— Doge (@IntelDoge) May 24, 2022
Responding to the incident at Robb Elementary, Texas Democrat Representative Veronica Escobar said that school shootings are “unfortunately, an American problem that it seems many lawmakers refuse to solve.”
In a tweet, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said that America needs to “take a serious look at the state of mental health today,” adding that the country is “failing our youngest generations from decades of rejecting” good moral teachings. “We don’t need more gun control. We need to return to God,” Greene concluded.
Our nation needs to take a serious look at the state of mental health today.
Sometimes meds can be the problem.
America is failing our youngest generations from decades of rejecting good moral values and teachings.
We don’t need more gun control.
We need to return to God.
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) May 24, 2022
This is a developing news story, and may be updated as additional information becomes available.
