In the chilling aftermath of a deadly shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, on Wednesday morning, harrowing text messages from students to their parents revealed the profound terror, fear and confusion of the situation.
The tragedy began just before 10:30 am when Becky Van Der Walt received a bone-chilling text from her son, Henry, a junior at Apalachee High. “I think there's a school shooting,” Henry wrote urgently. “We heard gunshots and the police shouting ... We're all in hard lockdown.” A mere eight minutes later, his follow-up message was heart-wrenching in its simplicity, “I love you.”
Erin Clark, another anxious parent, faced a similar nightmare when her son, Ethan, sent a distressing text, “School shooting rn ... I'm scared,” he typed, adding, “pls I'm not joking.” Clark’s attempt to comfort him by leaving work was met with Ethan’s poignant, “I love you.”
Sonya Turner, who had just dropped off her daughter Abby at school, received a troubling update from her daughter in biology class. “There's a real lockdown,” Abby texted. “idk how to explain it ... I heard shots but I don't anymore.” Turner, who also has a 9-year-old son, immediately contacted her husband with the urgent plea: “It’s real. Go. Go. Go.” For the next agonizing hour, she stayed tethered to her phone, coordinating her family’s safety and offering comfort through a barrage of text messages.
“Where are you hiding?” Turner texted Abby, who replied from her hiding spot: “I’m behind a long desk.” Turner’s messages, filled with instructions and prayers, were a desperate attempt to provide solace amidst the chaos. Abby’s responses conveyed the paralyzing fear she felt: “No I can’t move ... I’m not aloud to mo[v]e.”
Despite the intense trauma, Ethan Clark and Abby Turner reportedly survived the harrowing ordeal, along with Turner’s other daughter, Isabella.
Apalachee High School shooting in Georgia: What we know so far
Two students and two teachers were killed in the shooting yesterday at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia. Nine others were injured. The 14-year-old suspect, Colt Gray, who used an AR-style weapon in the shooting, surrendered immediately and was taken into custody within minutes.
According to NBC news, the suspect's father, Colin Gray, 54, was arrested on four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
Colin Gray gave his son an AR-15 style rifle as a gift, two law enforcement sources said. The suspect was a new student at Apalachee High, having only been there for a partial day. The day of the shooting was his first full day at the school, Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said.