Texas Massacre: Authorities are still searching for the motive for the shooting

Two days after an 18-year-old shooter entered fourth grade and shot dead 19 children and two teachers, new details are revealed about what happened before the shooting - and about the actions of the special team that broke in after an hour of firing the classroom, and eliminated him.

"They did not hesitate, and formulated a plan, went into the classroom and dealt with the situation."

News agencies

26/05/2022

Thursday, 26 May 2022, 11:00 Updated: 12:53

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In video: In Texas mourn the deaths of 19 students and 2 teachers (Photo: Reuters)

US President Joe Biden and his wife Jill are expected to arrive today in the Texas town of Obleda where the deadly shooting took place on Tuesday, after yesterday condolences flowed from many of their leaders around the world, including Pope Francis, Emanuel Macron, French and German leaders, and Ukrainian presidents Volodymyr Zalansky, who said that "it is horrible to see victims of gunfire in peacetime."

Two days after the shooting, no motive has yet been revealed.

The shooter had no criminal record or history of mental health problems, officials said, other than the fact that he celebrated his 18th birthday and legally bought two AR-15 rifles and ammunition.

His grandfather said yesterday that he did not know Ramos had guns.

"If I had known, I would have reported it," Rolando Rice said.

Photographs of the victims of the shooting in Texas (Photo: image processing, documentation on social networks according to section 27A of the Copyright Law)

According to police, Salvador Ramos, the shooter, entered the building, though he had previously encountered an armed security guard at the school.

He wounded two policemen who responded to calls for gunfire, and eventually barricaded himself in class for about an hour during an exchange of fire between him and police.

Holes in the schedule of events still remained, but what began at 11:30 a.m., with the first report of an armed man approaching the building, ended with police officers from a special team breaking in and killing the shooter shortly after 1 p.m., police added.

Tony Gonzalez, the county representative who includes the city of Ovalde, told CNN: "The shootings stopped, and he fortified himself inside, and there was a lull," he said.

"It lasted about an hour, I understand, but there was a break of about half an hour in the exchange of fire. The police felt he was trapped. The other students at the school began to leave."

Massacre in Texas Elementary School: 19 children and two teachers were shot dead

In the video: The massacre at a school in Texas, 19 students and 2 adults were murdered (Photo: Reuters)

Raoul Oritz, commander of the U.S. Border Patrol, said his agents arrived at the scene after police had already contacted the shooter.

Several Border Police tactical staff, search and rescue personnel and other agents joined the local police and formed a team that entered the school.

"They did not hesitate, and formulated a plan. They went into the classroom and dealt with the situation as quickly as they could," Oritz said.

Thus ended the second deadliest shooting incident at a school in the United States since 2012, when 26 people were killed at Sandy Hawk Elementary School in Connecticut.

In addition, it was the 30th shooting incident in a number of schools in the state, according to a CNN calculation.

Salvador Ramos, shooter killed by police gunfire (Photo: Official Website, Instagram)

Before the shooting at the school, Ramos shot his grandmother in the face.

According to officials, the grandmother who called the emergency center is hospitalized, along with five other wounded, and her condition has improved from human to severe.

According to Texas Public Safety Department Commander Chris Oliverz, shortly after the initial shooting, police received an emergency call regarding a vehicle stuck in the gate when someone with a rifle was seen inside.

The man was wearing a protective vest, he added.

Eric Estrada, another officer, said that when the shooter entered the school he encountered a security guard, threw a black bag full of ammunition and entered the building.

After fortifying the classroom, the officers found themselves in a disadvantageous position.

"There was not enough manpower at that stage, and they focused mainly on saving lives and preventing further casualties," Estrada said.

"They started breaking windows around the building and tried to save and evacuate children and teachers at the same time."

The tactical team that included local and federal police officers is the one who forcibly entered the classroom and shot and shot to death, Oliverz said.

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