ATMORE, Ala. — Celebration and pride turned into tragedy for a small city in Alabama after gunfire erupted during a high school graduation party.

One person was killed and eight others were injured at a community center in Atmore, near the Florida border, early Saturday morning.

Witnesses say a fight broke out between two women during a graduation party for Escambia County High School’s seniors. As people were trying to separate the two women, police said, gunshots were fired inside that hit several people.

Atmore Police Chief Chuck Brooks told CNN officers responded to a 911 call for shots fired at the community center around 2 a.m. Saturday. Once officers got on the scene, shots were still being fired and police found one man dead in the center’s cafeteria. The shooting was at a former middle school transformed into a community center, police said.

The eight injured people were taken to a local hospital for treatment.

The suspects fled the scene and are still at large, Brooks said.

The high school’s principal Dennis Fuqua said in a statement Saturday the community “felt the pangs of tragedy due to the acts of violence that have left several of our past and present students injured.”

“It is unfortunate that the event at the community center has tainted the success our seniors and football team felt, but we love our Blue Devil Family and will continue to pray for wisdom and healing,” Fuqua said. </s> One person was killed and eight others were wounded in a shooting at an alcohol-fueled high school graduation party in Alabama, authorities say.

Hundreds of past and present students of Escambia County High School in Atmore reportedly attended the gathering that spiraled out of control in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Police received a 911 call about shots fired inside the venue, a building which once housed the local middle school, at around 2am and arrived to find one male dead of a gunshot wound.

Witnesses said shots rang out following an argument between two women at the party attended by hundreds.

'The shooter just started shooting and didn't stop you could hear pop, pop, pop, pop,' one woman, who asked not to be named, told NBC15, noting that the victim was a teenage boy.

'For this young boy to lose his life it's a tragedy. The kids had to bust the windows out of the building with their hands and arms and building running for their lives because the gunshots were inside,' she said.

Atmore Police Chief Chuck Brooks said person killed, who has not been named, was found in the cafeteria of the former Escambia County Middle School, which now serves as Atmore's community center.

No arrests have been made but authorities are looking for two potential suspects, according to Brooks.

He said the party spiraled out of control as word spread on social media.

None of the other eight victims were named and no details about their identities or conditions have been released.

Escambia County High School Principal Dennis Fuqua released a statement after the incident, which said: 'It's always a great day to be a Blue Devil, but yesterday was a day of triumph and tragedy.

'By day, our seniors experienced the high of obtaining 8.6 million dollars in scholarships, and our varsity football team experienced their first win of the season. Yet, by night we all felt the pangs of tragedy due to the acts of violence that have left several of our past and present students injured.

'It is unfortunate that the event at the community center has tainted the success our seniors and football team felt, but we love our Blue Devil Family and will continue to pray for wisdom and healing.'

Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to contact investigators at 251-368-9141. </s> Alabama authorities say a high school graduation party fueled by alcohol spiraled out of control early Saturday, leaving one person dead.

A shooting took place at a community center in Atmore early Saturday morning, killing one person and wounding eight others. (Source: WPMI/CNN)

Atmore Police Chief Chuck Brooks tells news outlets eight other people were hurt in a shooting at the old Escambia County Middle School, which now serves as the city's community center.

Authorities received a 911 call around 2 a.m. When police arrived, they found a man who was shot to death inside the building's cafeteria. His name has not been released.

Witnesses say the gunfire erupted after a fight between two women during a party that drew hundreds. Brooks said word spread about the party via social media.

Brooks says they have made no arrests at this time, but they are looking for two people.

Copyright 2019 Associated Press. All rights reserved. </s> ATMORE, Ala. (WHTM) - A high school graduation party in Atmore, Alabama took a violent turn on the morning of May 18th.

Atmore Police Chief Chuck Brooks says One man is dead and eight other people were hurt in a shooting at the old Escambia County Middle School.

Police responded to a call around 2:00 am reporting gunshots being heard in the area.

Police say that when they arrived at the middle school which has now been turned to a community center, there were more 300 people at the scene.

Brooks said that it started with two women fighting and then more people jumped in. One body was found in the cafeteria and 8 others have been reported injured and were escorted by helicopter to Sacred Heart Hospital.

Brooks says that no arrests have been made at this time.

This story is still updating at this time. </s> Police say a woman was killed and another wounded in a shooting outside a high school graduation ceremony in Georgia on Friday night.

Authorities said shots were fired at a Mount Zion High School parking lot after an argument between people who had attended a graduation ceremony for the Perry Learning Center, which prepares students for careers as an alternative to traditional high schools.

The graduation was held at the Clayton County Schools Performing Arts Center in Jonesboro, about 20 miles south of Atlanta.

Multiple media outlets report the dead woman was shot several times in the chest. The other woman was shot in the leg.

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It was unclear whether a suspect was in custody in connection with the shooting.

Clayton County schools Supt. Morcease Beasley on Saturday tweeted his congratulations to the more than 200 Perry graduates, but he also expressed sadness over the “senseless violence & death.” </s> Police in Clayton County south of Atlanta say one person was killed and another wounded in a shooting between people who had just attended a high school graduation ceremony. A police statement says “one person is now confirmed deceased.”

“All of the sudden, we all heard a series of gunshots,” witness Shannon Delgado told CBS Atlanta affiliate WGCL. “We didn’t know where they were coming from. Everybody just kind of froze, then we didn’t hear police, we heard more gunshots, but like a lot, like, ‘Pow, pow, pow, pow.’ That’s when we saw the cops, who were on the premises where the graduation was rush across the street because they were in the high school parking lot.”

The safety chief for the county’s schools, Thomas Trawick, says the shots were fired in a Mt. Zion High School parking lot after an argument between people who had attended a ceremony for graduates of the Perry Learning Center, which prepares students for careers as an alternative to traditional high schools.

The shooting occured just hours after 10 people were killed at Santa Fe High School in Texas. </s> A woman prays in the grass outside the Alamo Gym where parents wait to reunite with their kids following a shooting at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe, Texas, May 18, 2018.

As the school year ends and students prepare for graduation and prom, another high school shooting Friday reignited national debate over school safety when a gunman fatally shot 10 people at a Texas high school.

With worries running high since the Parkland high school shooting in February — especially over special events like prom and graduation — security experts say there's no new cause for heightened concern for special events this year.

Unless a school faces a specific threat or conflict between students, "there's no need to overact," said school safety expert Kenneth Trump.

Author of Proactive School Security and Emergency Preparedness Planning and president of National School Safety and Security Services, Trump has worked with educators for 30 years across the country to ensure schools have thorough safety plans in place in case of an emergency.

"The more we find people focused on grasping for extreme security measures and increased perceptions of security, the less prepared they are in the fundamentals of security," he said.

For example, having chaperones spread throughout a room rather than clumped off in a corner or using walkie-talkies for instant communication rather than cell phones that require service can make a huge difference in case of an emergency, Trump said.

At Santa Fe High school, where nine students and one adult were fatally shot Friday, students were preparing for a graduation scheduled for June 1.

What we know now: Texas school shooting: At least 10 dead

Security expert and author of Security Expert's Guide to Premise Liability Litigation, Chris McGoey stressed the importance of controlling building entrances and exits for special events. "If you have any additional security, have them outside the event," he said.

In many cases, proms are held off-campus at rented sites and graduations are often held in large gyms or outside on school grounds. While off-site situations make security more difficult, having someone scope out floor plans ahead of time can bolster safety, McGoey added.

There's no crystal ball for event security, and schools need to follow the plans they already have in place, McGoey said. "You can't protect at the extreme level at all schools at every event," he said.

For Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where a gunman killed 17 students and teachers in a Valentine's Day rampage, prom honored the victims with memorial service for the seniors who would have shared the special night with their classmates is planned.

Parkland students voiced their support for the victims and survivors of the Santa Fe shooting on Friday — the last day of school for Parkland seniors.

A version of this story was published April 28, 2018 </s> TORONTO — A man clad in black fired a handgun into restaurants and cafes in a lively Toronto neighborhood, killing a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman and wounding 13 others in an attack that has shaken the confidence of many in the normally safe city.

Authorities identified the suspect as Faisal Hussain, 29, of Toronto, who died after an exchange of gunfire with police. It was not immediately clear whether he killed himself or was killed by police.

The mass shooting late Sunday in Toronto's Greektown district came just three months after a van struck and killed 10 people in an apparent attack directed toward women.

Police Chief Mark Saunders said he would not speculate on a motive but did not rule out terrorism.

"It's almost inconceivable that these things can happen," said Mayor John Tory. "We were so used to living in a city where these things didn't happen and as we saw them going on in the world around us (we) thought they couldn't happen here."

"This is an attack against innocent families and our entire city."

The slain 18-year-old was identified as Reese Fallon, a recent high school graduate who volunteered for Canada's Liberal party and was due to attend McMaster University in the fall. Her family said in a statement they were devastated.

"She was ... smart, passionate and full of energy. It is a huge loss," said Canadian Member of Parliament Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, who knew Fallon.

Flags at Toronto City Hall as well as at Fallon's former high school, Malvern CI, and at school board buildings were lowered to half-staff.

" An engaging student, Reese Fallon graduated from Malvern CI just last month and was highly regarded by staff and loved by her friends," the school board said in a statement, adding that support was being offered to students.

The 13 wounded ranged in age from 10 to 59, and suffered injuries ranging from serious to minor, Saunders said. He did not name the victims, who included eight women and girls, and seven men.

Dr. Najma Ahmed of St. Michael's Hospital said five patients had been admitted in serious or critical condition and that three of the five underwent immediate lifesaving operations.

A video taken by a witness showed a man dressed all in black walking quickly down a sidewalk and firing three shots into at least one shop or restaurant in Toronto's Greektown, a residential area crowded with Greek restaurants and cafes.

Witnesses heard many shots and described the suspect walking past restaurants and cafes and patios on both sides of the street and firing into them.

Ontario's police watchdog said there was an exchange of gunfire between the assailant and two officers on a side street before the gunman was found dead near Danforth Avenue where the shootings occurred..

A spokeswoman for the Special Investigations Unit, Monica Hudon, said an autopsy would be performed Tuesday on the suspect.

Det.-Sgt. Terry Browne said police had sought a search warrant for an address related to the suspect but didn't say where.

Tanya Wilson was closing her tattoo shop on the street when she heard gunshots and a mother and her son ran into her store with gunshot wounds to their legs

"They said they were walking and a man told them to get the hell out his way and he just shot them," Wilson said.

Wilson said she tied and elevated their wounds and tried to keep them calm while they waited for paramedics. She locked the door and shut off the lights, not knowing what was happening outside.

Jody Steinhauer was celebrating her birthday with family at Christina's restaurant on Danforth Avenue when they heard 10 to 15 shots. They ran to the back to the restaurant and hid under a table.

"We heard a woman yell, 'Help!' My partner went outside the restaurant and the woman was right there. She had been shot," she said.

Her boyfriend and a doctor who was in the restaurant attended to the woman who was shot in the thigh. "She was screaming and yelling and in shock. Nobody was with her. That was the scary part," Steinhauer said.

Police, paramedics and other first responders descended on the scene, while people, some in their pajamas, emerged from their homes to see what was happening.

Though mass shootings are rare in Canada's largest city, Toronto police had deployed dozens of additional officers over the weekend to deal with a recent rise in gun violence in the city, which has seen 23 gun homicides so far this year, compared to 16 fatal shootings in the first half of 2017.

Toronto Councilor Paula Fletcher said the attack was "not gang related" and that the gunman shot "indiscriminately" into restaurants and into a park.

"I know we always say, 'That can't happen here,' when we see those gunmen in the States doing the same thing and it has happened here now," Fletcher said.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said the confidence that Toronto is a safe city had been shaken. Toronto has long prided itself as being one of the safest big cities in the world.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted: "The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave — and we'll be there to support you through this difficult time."

In April, the driver of a van plowed into pedestrians on a Toronto sidewalk, killing 10 people and injuring 14. Authorities have not disclosed a motive, but said the arrested driver, Alek Minassian, posted a message on social media referencing a misogynistic online community before the attack.

A now-deleted Facebook post indicated anger toward women and saluted Elliot Rodger, a community college student who killed six people and wounded 13 in shooting and stabbing attacks near the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 2014.

"The Incel Rebellion has already begun!" read the post, using the term incel to refer to "involuntarily celibate."

Meanwhile, Ottawa police arrested a 24-year-old man with a knife on Monday during the Changing of the Guard on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. No one was injured. It was unclear if the incident was related to the mass shooting in Toronto.

Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz in in New York contributed to this report.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> PARKLAND, FL (AP) - The Latest on a shooting at a Florida high school (all times local):

6:05 p.m.

 

A sheriff says 17 people have died in the shooting attack on a South Florida high school.

 

Sheriff Scott Israel of Broward County says the 19-year-old suspect is in custody and that investigators are beginning to "dissect" what happened in the attack Wednesday at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

 

He says the suspect, a former student, was previously expelled for disciplinary reasons.

 

Israel says the man had at least one rifle and multiple magazines.

 

He says most of the fatalities were inside the building though some were found fatally shot outside.

 

___

 



5:40 p.m.

 

A man says he watched as officers arrested the suspect in the shooting at a Florida high school, where authorities are reporting numerous deaths.

 

Michael Nembhard told The Associated Press he was in his garage watching TV news coverage of the shooting when he heard a police officer repeatedly yelling, "get on the ground!"

 

Nembhard says he looked up to see a teenage boy on the ground about 150 yards (meters) away with an officer pointing a gun at him. The officer stood over the boy until other officers arrived, handcuffed him and led him away.

 

A federal official who spoke on condition of anonymity identified the suspect as Nicolas Cruz. The official says he wasn't authorized to discuss it publicly.

 

Cruz is 19 years old. He had previously attended the high school but was expelled for disciplinary reasons.

 

____

 

5:20 p.m.

 

A federal official has identified the Florida school shooting suspect as Nicolas Cruz.

 

The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. The official says he had been briefed on the investigation into the shooting at the South Florida high school, but was not authorized to discuss it publicly.

 

Authorities in Florida say the shooter opened fire at the school Wednesday afternoon, killing "numerous" people. The shooting sent frightened students running out into the streets and SWAT team members swarming the building.

 

Authorities later announced that they had taken a former student, about 18 years old, into custody after locating him off the school grounds.

 

___

 

5 p.m.

 

Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel says the Florida high school shooting suspect is a former student about 18 years old.

 

He says the suspect was arrested without incident off school grounds in a nearby community. He didn't elaborate on when the suspect had attended Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parikland.

 

A shooter opened fire at the school Wednesday afternoon, killing "numerous" people, sending students running out into the streets and SWAT team members swarming in before authorities took the shooter into custody.

 

Israel says the FBI has arrived and will begin processing what he describes as "horrific scene."

 

He called it a "catastrophic day."

 

___

 

4:40 p.m.

 

Parents described scenes of chaos as they rushed to find their frightened children after a shooting at a South Florida high school.

 

Caesar Figueroa says he was one of the first parents to arrive at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, seeking his 16-year-old daughter after the shooting there.

 

A shooter opened fire at the school Wednesday, killing several people and sending students running out into the streets as SWAT team members swarming in. Authorities later reported they had taken the shooting suspect into custody.

 

Figueroa says: "It was crazy and my daughter wasn't answering her phone."

 

According to Figueroa, she texted him that she was hidden in a school closet with friends after she heard gunshots.

 

___

4:25 p.m.

 

A school official says there are numerous fatalities from the high school shooting in South Florida.

 

Broward County Superintendent Robert Runcie says "There are numerous fatalities. It is a horrific situation." He added, "It is a horrible day for us."

 

The Broward County Sheriff's Office tweeted Wednesday afternoon that "so far we have at least 14 victims." The tweet added: "Victims have been and continue to be transported to Broward Health Medical Center and Broward Health North hospital."

 

The sheriff's statement didn't elaborate on the victims or their injuries.

 

___

 

4:15 p.m.

 

The White House has canceled its daily press briefing after a Florida high school shooting that sent students rushing into the streets.

 

President Donald Trump has spoken with Florida Gov. Rick Scott about the shooting. He says 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 says Trump has offered Florida federal assistance, if needed. The homeland security secretary has also been in touch with state and local officials.

 

Sanders says, "We continue to keep the victims, and their friends and family, in our thoughts and prayers."

 

___

 

4:10 p.m.

 

Authorities say the shooter at a South Florida high school is now in custody.

 

The Broward County Sheriff's Office gave no details in briefly tweeting that development. It did not identify the shooting suspect nor say how the person was taken into custody.

 

Television footage showed police putting a person in the back of a police car outside the high school.

 

___

 

4 p.m.

 

Parent John Obin says his son, a freshman at the South Florida high school where the shooting erupted, says his child was in class when he heard several shots. The father says his son advised that teachers quickly rushed students out of the school. He adds the boy told his father that he walked by two people on the ground motionless - and apparently dead - as students rushed outside.

 

"This is a really good school, and now it's like a war zone," Obin said

 

Coral Springs Police said on their Twitter account Wednesday that Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School was locked down and that students and teachers inside should remain barricaded until police reach them.

 

Outside, televised news footage showed two people on stretchers and another person being treated on the ground at an intersection near the scene of the school. Paramedics were treating those who appeared to be students with injuries, but it wasn't clear how they were hurt. A few students were loaded into ambulances.

 

One unidentified student told a reporter at the scene that at first students thought it was a fire drill because they had heard fire alarms going off.

 

___

 

3:55 p.m.

 

The shooting at a South Florida high school sent students rushing into the streets as SWAT team members swarmed in and locked down the building. Police were warning that the shooter was still at large even as ambulances converged on the scene and emergency workers appeared to be treating those possibly wounded.

 

Aerial television news footage showed police in olive fatigues, with weapons drawn, entering the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. Then dozens of students could be seen frantically running and others quickly walking out. A police officer waved the students on, urging them to quickly evacuate the school.

 

Some students exited the building in single-file rows with hands raised overhead to show they carried no weapons. Others held onto other students as they made their way out past helmeted police in camouflage with weapons drawn.

 

Emergency medical personnel pulled stretchers from the backs of ambulances as police cars surrounded the parking lot. At least one person was seen being wheeled to the ambulance on a gurney. It wasn't immediately clear how many people were wounded.

 

__

 

3:45 p.m.

 

Len Murray's 17-year-old son, a junior at the South Florida high school where shooting was reported, sent his parents a chilling text: "Mom and Dad, there have been shots fired on campus at school. There are police sirens outside. I'm in the auditorium and the doors are locked."

 

Those words came at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. A few minutes later, he texted again: "I'm fine."

 

Murray raced to the school only to be stopped by authorities under a highway overpass within view of the school buildings in Parkland.

 

No information was immediately given to parents, Len Murray says. And he says he remained worried for all those inside.

 

"I'm scared for the other parents here. You can see the concern in everybody's faces. Everybody is asking, 'Have you hard from your child yet?'"

 

___

 

3:15 p.m.

 

Authorities say a shooter at a Florida high school is still at large.

 

The Broward Sheriff's Office shared the information on its Twitter account after Wednesday afternoon's shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

 

It wasn't immediately clear how many people were wounded.

 

___

 

2:30 p.m.

 

Authorities say they're responding to a shooting at a Florida high school.

 

The Broward Sheriff's Office has told news outlets the shooting occurred Wednesday afternoon at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

 

It wasn't immediately clear how many people were wounded.
One person was killed and eight injured in a shooting after a dispute between two women at a large high school graduation party. The suspect is still at large.