Police killed an armed student after an “active shooter” was reported Wednesday near a college in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin, authorities said.
No other students or police officers were injured in the threat, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul said at a news conference.
“It could have been a much worse tragedy,” Mr. Kaul said.
Authorities did not identify the person killed, but said the student was an underage male who attended a school in the Mount Horeb Area School District. It is unclear what type of weapon the student possessed.
Officers from the Mount Horeb Police Department shot the armed student, Mr. Kaul said. It is unclear whether the student fought back against the officers.
The Associated Press reported that witnesses said they heard gunshots and saw dozens of children running.
Earlier in the day, the Mount Horeb Area School District said in a Facebook post that there had been “an active shooter near our middle school this morning,” adding that the person did not enter school.
Steve Salerno, the district’s superintendent, said at the news conference that the episode was “every parent’s nightmare.”
“Frankly, it’s an out-of-body experience,” Mr. Salerno said.
Before the news conference, the district of Mount Horeb, a village of 7,600 about 20 miles southwest of Madison, said an initial search at the college turned up no additional suspects.
“It is equally important to note that no individuals were injured, except for the alleged attacker,” the district said. Mount Horeb schools were “strictly closed,” the district said, while police officers circulated around the college.
The district initially urged parents not to come to middle school for their children.
“Students will remain in the buildings while police continue their investigation,” the district said, adding that “reunification will take time and will occur in stages.”
Mr. Kaul said reunification was still underway Wednesday evening, after the the district had said it would begin dismissing students at 5 p.m. local time.
Melissa Alvarado told WMTV, a television station in Wisconsin, that she was at work when her children called her to tell her there had been a shooting. “Getting that call and not knowing, are they going to make it? Will this be our last phone call? she says. “It’s hard.”
The school district will not have classes Thursday, Kaul said, adding that he hoped classes would resume Friday.
In a joint statementThe Village of Mount Horeb and the Mount Horeb Area Chamber of Commerce expressed their gratitude to the police and local businesses who provided a safe space for students.
Gov. Tony Evers of Wisconsin said he was closely monitoring the situation.
“I pray for the health and safety of our children, educators and staff and am grateful to the first responders who are working quickly to respond,” he wrote on social media.
Joe Parisi, Dane County Executive, said in a statement that “moments like this are turning upside down, causing trauma, grief and a moment of reflection for all of us.”
