Multiple victims in shooting at Brown University in Rhode Island. And a lot of confusion too, further fueled by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, who announced that the suspect had been arrested, then corrected and said that was not the case. According to Trump, “the FBI is on site.”
“I have been briefed on the situation,” Trump told reporters: “It’s terrible, and the only thing we can do is pray for the victims. We will report later on what is happening.”
“It’s still early, but at this time there are two dead and nine people injured, but stable at Rhode Island Hospital,” reported the mayor of Providence, capital of Rhode Island, Brett Smiley: “Also, we have not arrested the shooter. At this time, there is an order to take shelter or stay at home.”
The shooting took place in the Barus and Holley building, located at Brown University and housing engineering and physics classrooms and laboratories, Smiley reported. “All we have is a suspect who was a man dressed in black. It is not clear how we entered the building,” local authorities acknowledged.
According to a release from Brown University, at 4:22 p.m. the center alerted the campus “of a shooter incident near the Barus and Holley building.” We have asked our community to shelter in place by locking doors, silencing phones, and staying hidden until further notice. This remains an active crime scene and law enforcement continues to search for the suspect.
The statement said several victims of the shooting were “confirmed, but we cannot share their status. They were transported to local hospitals.”
“Our first priority is the safety of our community and coordinating closely with local law enforcement and medical personnel to ensure their safety,” the statement continued: “We are working to determine who was in the building at the time of the shooting. We had several scheduled checks at this building between 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. We can confirm that emergency services are on scene.”
Brown is a private institution with approximately 7,300 undergraduate students and more than 3,000 graduate students. Saturday was the second day of fall semester finals.
About The Author
