33 students dead at Virginia Tech

[LeonChan 0]

BLACKSBURG, Va. - A gunman opened fire in a dorm and classroom at Virginia Tech on Monday, killing at least 30 people in the deadliest shooting rampage in U.S. history, government officials told The Associated Press. The gunman was killed, bringing to death toll to 31, but it was unclear if he was shot by police or took his own life.

"Today the university was struck with a tragedy that we consider of monumental proportions," said Virginia Tech president Charles Steger. "The university is shocked and indeed horrified."

The name of the gunman was not immediately released, and investigators offered no motive for the attack. It was not immediately known if the gunman was a student.

FBI spokesman Richard Kolko in Washington said there was no immediate evidence to suggest it was a terrorist attack, "but all avenues will be explored."

The shootings spread panic and confusion on campus, with witnesses reporting students jumping out the windows of a classroom building to escape the gunfire. SWAT team members with helmets, flak jackets and assault rifles swarmed over the campus. Students and faculty members carried out some of the wounded themselves, without waiting for ambulances to arrive.

The bloodbath took place at opposite sides of the 2,600-acre campus, beginning at about 7:15 a.m. at West Ambler Johnston, a coed dormitory that houses 895 people, and continuing at least two hours later at Norris Hall, an engineering building about a half-mile away, authorities said.

Police said they were still investigating the shooting at the dorm when they got word of gunfire at the classroom building.

After the first shots were fired, students were warned to stay indoors and away from the windows. But some students said they thought the precautions had been lifted by the time the second burst of gunfire was heard, and some bitterly questioned why the gunman was able to strike a second time, two hours after the bloodshed began.

Some of the dead were students. One student was killed in the dorm, and the others were killed in the classroom, Virginia Tech Police Chief W.R. Flinchum.

Up until Monday, the deadliest campus shooting in U.S. history was a rampage that took place in 1966 at the University of Texas at Austin, where Charles Whitman climbed the clock tower and opened fire with a rifle from the 28th-floor observation deck. He killed 16 people before he was shot to death by police.

The massacre Monday took place almost eight years to the day after the Columbine High bloodbath near Littleton, Colo. On April 20, 1999, two teenagers killed 12 fellow students and a teacher before taking their own lives.

The deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history was in Killeen, Texas, in 1991, when George Hennard drove his pickup into a Luby's Cafeteria and shot 23 people to death, then himself.

Founded in 1872, Virginia Tech is nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of southwestern Virginia, about 160 miles west of Richmond. With more than 25,000 full-time students, it has the state's largest full-time student population. The school is best known for its engineering school and its powerhouse Hokies football team.

The rampage took place on a brisk spring day, with snow flurries swirling around the campus, which is centered around the Drill Field, a grassy field where military cadets

[Du5t1n 57]

My teacher got a call today from their public relations person requesting he not talk to the press... he used to work in that engineering building where part of the shooting happened... sad stuff :/ Surprised it happened at a college too...

[Twili 0]

It's a pretty major thing, after all we heard about it in Aus', but in any case it is still a very sad event.

But I doubt that Bush actually cares.

[eyeoftruth 2]

wow... it so weird I haven't heard about it before...

I wonder why stuff like that always happens in america

[ZuZu 10]

modern day columbine..

funny how they suggest he was a terrorist, when North America has always had problems with high school shootings thanks to its loose gun laws.

[Farron 0]

They suggested he was a terrorist because he has had a student visa and was in there for two years,but him being a terrorist is unlikely in my opinion,because they say he's from China,and the only problems we had with them were in the 1500s.

but damn...33 people dead.as soon as my dad got home,my parents switched to the news and started watching it.I saw a link to the report about it on yahoo.com before my dad got home,and I was just thinking 'really??holy ****'.It's sad,though.all those people are dead,and for what reason?some chinese dude got pissed so he thought it'd be funny to shoot up the school?

[eyeoftruth 2]

modern day columbine..

funny how they suggest he was a terrorist, when North America has always had problems with high school shootings thanks to its loose gun laws.

Yeah it is because of theyre loose gun laws, but we can't only blame that. The whole american society is just wrong. It's built on fear.

[Relean 1]

That guy took so many lives away...

I feel for the families of the death students.

[Keaton 0]

I heard about it while I was in school yesterday. We were watching the news.. I almost couldn't believe it. We know some people with family that that go there. It's horrible.

It makes me wonder what America's coming to.

[Fye 0]

I wonder if these types of deals occur in other countries as well. In America, we mainly hear only American news and none other, mostly. In other countries, w/e happens in America, like these attacks, they hear about. There will ALWAYS be crazy people, and crazy people take advantage of the niceness of American grounds, since it's easier to do crazy things here, i think, and it rouses a lot of people. Didn't know about this till i saw someone reading a newspaper and I saw the front page saying "Massacre and mourning". Hah, not to make this sound funny or go into careless thought, but if you watched DN, it might feel weird (lost train of thought). Anyways, it sucks this stuff happens, here, there, anywhere, especially for his motive, which is... ? So far, unknown.

[Ryu 7]

That guy took so many lives away...

I feel for the families of the death students.

yea i saw the link to it on MSN the other day that would suck to be related or friends with one of the 33 people that died stuff like this happens all the time but not this bad thats just insane stupid idiots.i think they should bring back our solders from iraq its just a waist of precious time and once we have more cops and have no real guns instead then it would be a better place and i also think they should only have americans cuz there seems to me there is more illegal aliens then then americans now-a-days

[Goron Merchant 1]

I heard about this too. Very sad.

[Relean 1]

there seems to me there is more illegal aliens then then americans now-a-days

That's not a very nice thing to say...

[Aatch 0]

The gun culture in America is astounding. I've been in New Zealand for 1.5 years now, and I can see that gun culture is a lot bigger here than in England (Where I am originally from). But when you look at the USA, you see that guns are easy to get.

In the news here, a Kiwi family with their son at Virginia Tech were interviewed, they said that a lot of his friends were gun holders. Specifically rifles and sub-machine guns.

Also, ryu, you are a perfect example of American ignorance. Many people in America are illegal immigrants, they lead perfectly normal and productive lives. They pay taxes, send their children to public school, they are little different to ordinary Americans. Its like that joke:

Two Iraqis immigrate to to the USA, they say that they will meet up again in a year to see how much they have changed by American culture. They meet up, one says that he has a nice house in a small suburb, three children and he is about to go to pick up his son from baseball practice and then sit at home and watch Football on the TV. The other one says "**** off towelhead".

Who is more American?

[Relean 1]

The gun culture over here is not as big as in the U.S, but it's increasing at an alarming speed.