Three Children and One Adult Killed in Bend, Oregon Elementary School Shooting; 16-Year-Old Suspect Dead, Possibly Shot by Armed Bystander

Three children and one adult were killed Thursday in a shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, according to multiple law enforcement sources. The suspected shooter, a 16-year-old male, was also killed inside the school, and sources said he was shot by an armed bystander.

Bend Police communications manager Sheila Miller said the first 911 call came at about 12:59 p.m. local time reporting that an unknown person had fired a shot into a car outside the school. Within about a minute, multiple additional 911 calls reported that the person had entered the building and begun shooting. Officers arrived by approximately 1:02 p.m. and found the suspect already dead from a gunshot wound inside the school.

Miller told reporters the shooter “may have been a bystander” but said investigators had not confirmed who fired the fatal shot. Multiple media outlets, citing law enforcement sources, reported that the 16-year-old used a shotgun and was killed by a bystander who was legally carrying a concealed firearm. One source told Fox News the intervention stopped the attack from claiming more lives. Police have not publicly identified the shooter or the bystander.

At least two people were transported by medics to St. Charles Medical Center. Their conditions were not immediately known. Miller confirmed that victims included children. Sources reported a total of four dead—three children and one adult—separate from the shooter. The school, which serves kindergarten through fifth grade and has roughly 400 to 450 students and more than 40 staff members, was placed on lockdown and evacuated room by room. A family reunification site was set up at nearby Journey Church.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau’s local office was on the scene assisting local authorities and that every needed resource would be made available. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was also assisting, along with Oregon State Police. Bend-La Pine Schools Superintendent Steven Cook said the district was “stunned and heartbroken by this senseless tragedy” and extended sympathy to the families affected. All district schools were closed Friday, with extracurricular and athletic events canceled.

The investigation remains ongoing. Officials have not released the names of the victims or the suspect, and the precise circumstances of how the shooter was killed have not been formally confirmed by police beyond Miller’s statement that it may have been a bystander.