Meanwhile, in addition to the school tragedy, two more people were killed at a residential property and are believed to have been connected to the incident, though police stated that they ‘are not in a position to provide that definitively’.
RCMP Superintendent Ken Floyd briefed reporters on the situation so far, which included the news that officers had identified the shooter, but declined to release a name or motive as the investigation remained ongoing, as he said: “We are not in a place to understand why or what may have motivated this tragedy.”“As part of the initial response to the active shooting, police entered the school to locate the threat. During the search, officers located multiple victims. An individual believed to be the shooter was also found deceased with what appears to be a self‑inflicted injury,” RCMP said in a statement.
Following the tragedy, British Columbia Premier David Eby expressed his condolences to the families affected and said in a statement: “Our hearts are in Tumbler Ridge tonight with the families of those who have lost loved ones. Government will ensure every possible support for community members in the coming days, as we all try to come to terms with this unimaginable tragedy.”
Unlike the US, where school shootings are heartbreakingly common, they continue to remain a rarity in their Northern neighbours Canada.
Tuesday’s shootings were Canada’s deadliest rampage overall since 2020, when a gunman in Nova Scotia shot dead 13 people and started a series of fires that left another nine people dead.
In a bid to tackle mass shootings in the country, Canada’s government previously introduced gun control measures and recently extended this to a ban on all guns it considers assault weapons.
