Four dead in shooting at Georgia high school; 14-year-old suspect in custody

Two students and two teachers were killed and nine others injured in a shooting at a school an hour outside of Atlanta on Wednesday, authorities said.

One of the suspects, a 14-year-old student, is alive and was taken into custody after the shooting at Apalachee High School, Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said at a press conference late Wednesday afternoon.

The suspect turned himself in to authorities immediately after the confrontation, Hosey said. He will be charged with murder and treated as an adult, Hosey said.

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith lamented the “absolutely evil” and “hateful events” that occurred at the school.

He had previously said it would take “several days” to find out what had happened. “New information is being gained every minute,” he said.

Smith said authorities were working to reunite the students with their parents.

The first call reporting an “active shooter” came in around 10:30 a.m., Smith said. Hosey said police officers and two school security officers arrived at the scene within minutes of the shooting being reported.

A “soft lockdown” was imposed on all Barrow County Schools campuses in Winder, Georgia, with most activity centered around Apalachee High School, where police cars, fire trucks and ambulances were gathered.

Students could be seen being escorted to the school's football stadium.

“I have deployed all available state resources to respond to the incident at Apalachee High School and urge all Georgians to join my family in praying for the safety of those in our classrooms, both in Barrow County and across the state,” Governor Brian Kemp said in a statement.

President Joe Biden said he mourned those killed as he urged Congress to pass gun safety legislation.

“What should have been a joyful start to the school year in Winder, Georgia, has now turned into another horrific reminder of how gun violence continues to tear our communities apart,” Biden said in a statement.

“Students across the country are learning to duck and hide instead of learning to read and write,” he added. “We cannot continue to accept this as normal.”

US Attorney General Merrick Garland expressed his “deepest sadness” to the affected families and said the Justice Department was ready to provide support.

Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta confirmed it was treating a gunshot victim.

School operations at Apalachee HS began on August 1st.

According to the school's website, it is the second high school in Barrow County and opened in 2000.

According to officials, FBI agents from Atlanta were dispatched to the scene to assist local authorities.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com.