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Two dead during shooting at Saugus High School

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Two people were killed and least four others were injured in a shooting yesterday at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita. The suspect—believed to be a student at the campus—was tracked down by sheriff’s deputies and taken to a hospital for treatment of unknown injuries.

At press time, there was no immediate word on whether the person who died was a student or staff member at the school. The suspect was in grave condition at press time after shooting himself.

The shooting was reported about 7:40 a.m. at the campus at 21900 Centurion Way, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The gunfire sent some students racing off campus, while others reported barricading themselves inside classrooms.

Sheriff’s deputies swarmed the campus, which was immediately locked down, along with two neighboring elementary schools.

The suspect, described only as an Asian male wearing dark clothing, walked or ran from the campus after the shooting, prompting a massive law enforcement dragnet through the area. Sheriff Alex Villanueva said the gunman appeared to have been a student.

Shortly before 10 a.m., Villanueva announced that the suspect was in custody and being treated at a hospital.

The Los Angeles County Fire Department reported that six patients had been transported from the scene. Officials at Henry Mayo Hospital in Valencia initially said they were treating four patients from Saugus High School—one female and two males who were in critical condition, and another male who was in good condition. The hospital later confirmed that the female patient had died.

After the shooting, the high school and all other schools in the William S. Hart Unified High School District were placed on lockdown as a precaution. The lockdown was lifted about 90 minutes afterward for all but Saugus High School and Arroyo Seco Junior High.

A sheriff’s SWAT team was assigned to the investigation, as were agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Shaken parents, many in tears over the safety of their children, flocked to the area. Central Park, at 27150 Bouquet Canyon Road, was established as a reunification point for parents and students from the school. Parents could be seen milling around area streets waiting.

As students filtered out of the campus, some ran to the line of teens and hugged the children in tears.

A parent waiting to be reunited with her child told KNX Newsradio that she had been in touch with her 16-year-old daughter, who was in a choir class when a wounded student stumbled into the classroom. Her daughter and at least one other teen worked to staunch the bleeding, she said, but had no other information about the condition of the injured student.

The White House released a statement saying President Donald Trump “is monitoring the ongoing reports of a school shooting in Santa Clarita, Calif. The White House encourages all those in the area to follow the advice of local law enforcement and first responders.’’

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