Why it matters:
The deadly incident is one of the deadliest mass shootings in recent Canadian history, and has reignited the perennial debate about gun control and mental health. The event is set in a broader context of gun violence in Western societies. In the past year alone, shootings of civilians in Canada have killed dozens (the exact annual toll varies depending on definitions and sources, but reports indicate dozens of civilians have died in gun-related incidents and incidents). Such incidents serve as a contributing factor to unrest and feelings of insecurity in Western societies, fueling public distrust of security institutions and calls for stronger preventive measures.
The big picture:
The shooting brought to Canada a pattern similar to that common in our southern neighbor, the United States, but with one unusual difference: the gender of the attacker. Mass shootings in North America are almost always carried out by men. The tragedy also brought back bitter memories of Canada's past, including the April 2020 deadly shooting in Nova Scotia (22 dead) and the December 1989 massacre at the Polytechnique in Montreal (14 dead).
What he's saying:
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement on X: "I am devastated by today’s horrific shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C. My prayers and deepest condolences are with the families and friends who have lost loved ones to this horrific act of violence."
The outburst, one of the country's deadliest mass casualty events in recent history, brought to Canada the type of mass shooting more common in the neighboring United States.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said six people were found dead inside the high school in the town of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia. Two more people were found dead at a residence believed to be connected to the incident, and another person died en route to the hospital.\
The bottom line:
At least two other people were hospitalized with serious or life-threatening injuries, and as many as 25 people were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries, police added.
A suspected shooter was also found dead from what appears to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Authorities stated they did not believe there were any more suspects or an ongoing threat to the public.
Police described the shooter as a woman, an unusual development, as mass shootings in North America are almost always carried out by men.
An active shooter alert described the suspect as "female in a dress with brown hair." Police Superintendent Ken Floyd later confirmed at a press conference that the suspect described in the alert was the same person found dead in the school. Police did not specify how many of the victims were minors.
Go deeper:
Tumbler Ridge is a remote municipality with a population of around 2,400 people in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in northern British Columbia, approximately 1,155 km (717 miles) northeast of Vancouver.
"Multiple injuries and multiple deceased were inside the school as officers progressed through the scene," Floyd told reporters. "We're still triaging other victims, and I don't have updates on whether that number could rise. The scene was very dramatic, and there are multiple victims that are still being cared for."
In April 2020, a 51-year-old man disguised in a police uniform and driving a fake police car shot and killed 22 people in a 13-hour rampage in Nova Scotia before police killed him. In Canada's worst school shooting, in December 1989, a gunman killed 14 women at Montreal's École Polytechnique before committing suicide.
Hossein Amiri - ahmad shirzadian
