Florida shooting: 17 dead in 'absolutely pure evil' high school massacre in Parkland - as it happened
The suspect has been identified as 19-year-old former student, who was once expelled from the school
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Your support makes all the difference.Seventeen people have been killed and more than a dozen injured after a gunman opened fire at a Florida high school.
Aerial footage showed students streaming out of the school with their hands in the air before dropping their backpacks into a large pile next to police and sitting on nearby grass. Parents were instructed to meet at a location away from the school, where they waited anxiously to be reunited with their children.
The carnage began shortly before school was to be let out at 2.40 pm, when the sound of gunfire ripped through the air.
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Sheriff Scott Israel of Broward County said the 19-year-old suspect - identified in media reports as Nikolaus Cruz - is in custody and that investigators are beginning to "dissect" what happened in the attack.
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, about 45 miles (72 km) north of Miami, was placed on a “code red” lock down, and students tweeted and texted from inside about the chaos that had come down upon their school.
Of the fatalities, 12 were killed inside the school, two were killed outside on the campus grounds, one was killed on a road outside of the school, and another two were transported to the hospital but died there.
Sheriff Israel said the suspect, a former student, was previously expelled for disciplinary reasons. Mr Israel added that the gunman had at least one rifle - believed to be an AR-15 - and multiple magazines.
The White House has cancelled its daily press briefing and President Donald Trump has spoken with Florida Governors Rick Scott about the shooting. He said in a tweet that the White House is “working closely with law enforcement on the terrible Florida school shooting.”
He earlier tweeted his condolences to the families of the victims.
Spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Mr Trump has offered Florida federal assistance, if needed. The homeland security secretary has also been in touch with state and local officials.
Ms Sanders said, “We continue to keep the victims, and their friends and family, in our thoughts and prayers.”
Agencies contributed to this report
A fire alarm sounded during the attack, with officials believing this may have been used to draw more people out into corridors of the school.
The New York Daily News has started to respond to tweets about the shooting by politicians by putting how much campaign funding they received from gun rights groups and their ranking from the National Rifle Association (NRA).
I'm sure Congress as a whole will be feeling pressure over gun control tomorrow.
The tweet below is in reply to a tweet from Senator Ted Cruz.
Associated Press are reporting that the gunman wore a gas mask and carried smoke grenades, although it is unclear at this stage whether these were used.
Senator Bill Nelson said he had been briefed by the FBI and that the gunman had “set off the fire alarm so the kids would come pouring out of the classrooms into the hall. And there the carnage began.”
Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords has said the deadly school shooting in Florida should "strike fear into all Americans."
The Democrat from Arizona was shot in the head and survived a shooting attack in 2011.
She said in a statement that her heart goes out to the victims and survivors of the school shooting, She called it the latest attack in an epidemic of gun violence that continues "days after deadly day."
She also said that the latest in a series of deadly US shootings should stir fresh resolve in Congress to "find the courage to pass the laws we need to protect our children."
Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz of Florida has also issued condolences. She called the attack in Parkland, Florida, "another senseless school shooting ... this time in our community."
Mitt Romney, a former US governor who was widely expected to announce a run for Senate tomorrow, has delayed his announcement in light of the shooting.
Broward County School District Superintendent Robert Rouncie has confirmed that the suspected shooter was a former student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas who had been expelled. He added that the student had been enrolled in the district at the time of the shooting, but did not elaborate.
Mr Rouncie said classes at the high school were cancelled for the remainder of the week. The district would also provide grief counsellors for students, staff, and their families, he said.
Florida Governor Rick Scott has called the shooting "absolutely pure evil". He said he would stay in Parkland for the time being to support the victims, and would provide state resources to do "whatever we can”.
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