ADVERTISEMENT

Gunman kills 9 in Oregon college classroom, town reeling

"You know, there's all this stuff in the news and with politics going on about the Second Amendment and gun control," said Ken Shemel. "It's like, 'Come on, guys, just give us a second to breathe,' you know?"

Gunman kills 9 in Oregon college classroom, town reeling

Residents of a quiet Oregon town struggled to comprehend the carnage left by the latest U.S. mass shooting as investigators puzzled over what drove a young gunman to kill nine people in a college classroom before he died in an exchange of gunfire with police.

The Thursday late-morning shooting rampage at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, a former timber town of 20,000 on the western edge of the Cascade Mountains, ranked as the deadliest mass killing this year in the United States.

The gunman stormed into a classroom in Snyder Hall on campus, shot a professor at point-blank range, then ordered cowering students to stand up and state their religion before he shot them one by one, according to survivors' accounts.

Seven people were hospitalized, three of them listed as critical.

ADVERTISEMENT

The killer died after exchanging gunfire with two police officers who confronted him.

The gunman was not identified by local authorities, and Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin vowed never to utter his name. But a law enforcement source confirmed media reports naming the suspect as Chris Harper-Mercer, 26.

In a photo posted on what was believed to be his MySpace profile, a young man with a shaved head and dark-rimmed eyeglasses stares into the camera while holding a rifle.

"WE'VE BECOME NUMB"

At the White House, a visibly angry President Barack Obama challenged Americans across the political spectrum to press their elected leaders to enact tougher firearms-safety laws.

ADVERTISEMENT

He lashed out at the National Rifle Association gun lobby for blocking reforms and lamented how common mass shootings had become.

"Somehow this has become routine. The reporting is routine. My response here, at this podium, ends up being routine," he said. "We've become numb to this."

Residents at an apartment house a short distance from campus where the suspect lived recognized him from photos and described him as edgy.

A man identifying himself as Ian Mercer, the gunman's father, spoke briefly to a throng of reporters and camera crews outside his home in Los Angeles on Thursday night.

"It's been a devastating day, devastating for me and my family," he said, according to a transcript provided by KNBC-TV.

ADVERTISEMENT

Authorities offered no motive for the shooting. Hanlin, the county sheriff, said an investigation was underway by homicide detectives and federal agents. Residents of Roseburg, about 260 miles (420 km) south of Portland, were left to ponder the how and why of the violence.

"ARE YOU A CHRISTIAN?"

Accounts from survivors were chilling.

Stacy Boylan, the father of an 18-year-old student who was wounded but survived by playing dead, told CNN his daughter recalled seeing her professor being shot point blank as the assailant stormed into the classroom.

"He was able to stand there and start asking people one by one what their religion was," Boylan said, relating the ordeal as described by his daughter. "'Are you a Christian?' he would ask them. ... 'If you're a Christian, stand up. Good. Because you're a Christian, you're going to see God in just about one second,' and he shot and killed them. And he kept going down the line, doing this to people."

ADVERTISEMENT

Scores of people huddled at a somber candlelight vigil in a park on Thursday night.

"We need to start loving each other as people ... or our nation is going to start falling apart," said Michael Sprague, 35, a businessman who lives in the Roseburg area.

The violence in Roseburg was the latest in a flurry of mass killings in recent years across the United States and the deadliest so far in 2015. It surpassed the nine killed in a gun battle between motorcycle gangs in Waco, Texas, in May, and the nine who died in the rampage at a black church in Charleston, South Carolina, in June.

Not counting Thursday's incident, 293 mass shootings have been reported this year, according to the Mass Shooting Tracker website, a crowd-sourced database kept by anti-gun activists that logs events in which four or more people are shot.

The violence has fueled demands for more gun control in the United States, where ownership of firearms is protected by the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, and for better care for the mentally ill.

ADVERTISEMENT

Those grieving at Thursday night's vigil said they were still trying to understand the tragedy.

"You know, there's all this stuff in the news and with politics going on about the Second Amendment and gun control," said Ken Shemel. "It's like, 'Come on, guys, just give us a second to breathe,' you know?"

JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!

Unblock notifications in browser settings.
ADVERTISEMENT

Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:

Email: eyewitness@pulse.ng

Recommended articles

Lagos postpones eagerly anticipated Easter boat regatta indefinitely

Lagos postpones eagerly anticipated Easter boat regatta indefinitely

Third Mainland Bridge reopens in 1 week, formal ceremony later - Minister

Third Mainland Bridge reopens in 1 week, formal ceremony later - Minister

Sanwo-Olu opens 'Sunday market' on Good Friday for Easter shopping

Sanwo-Olu opens 'Sunday market' on Good Friday for Easter shopping

Wike thanks Tinubu for the opportunity to serve

Wike thanks Tinubu for the opportunity to serve

Barrister Bida pens special birthday prayer for President Tinubu, Nigerians

Barrister Bida pens special birthday prayer for President Tinubu, Nigerians

Tinubu’s aide distributes food items to 1,750 persons in FCT, Kwara

Tinubu’s aide distributes food items to 1,750 persons in FCT, Kwara

Court grants senator accused of forging NYSC certificate ₦50m bail

Court grants senator accused of forging NYSC certificate ₦50m bail

BREAKING: Delta monarch declared wanted by military surrenders to police

BREAKING: Delta monarch declared wanted by military surrenders to police

Renowned Canada-based Nigerian playwright, Oguntokun is dead

Renowned Canada-based Nigerian playwright, Oguntokun is dead

Pulse Sports

Nigeria vs Mali: Has Finidi George done enough to land Super Eagles job permanently?

Nigeria vs Mali: Has Finidi George done enough to land Super Eagles job permanently?

I want to emulate Keshi and win the AFCON - Finidi George shares ambitious Super Eagles dream

I want to emulate Keshi and win the AFCON - Finidi George shares ambitious Super Eagles dream

Michelle Alozie: I had to do it because of African referees

Michelle Alozie: I had to do it because of African referees

AC Milan star reveals he was named after Super Eagles legend Tijani Babangida

AC Milan star reveals he was named after Super Eagles legend Tijani Babangida

Give him the job! Super Eagles fans beg NFF to make Finidi George permanent coach after Nigeria's win over Ghana

Give him the job! Super Eagles fans beg NFF to make Finidi George permanent coach after Nigeria's win over Ghana

Super Eagles 2-1 Black Stars: Nigerians praise Iwobi, Lookman, Finidi George after friendly victory against Ghana

Super Eagles 2-1 Black Stars: Nigerians praise Iwobi, Lookman, Finidi George after friendly victory against Ghana

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT