2 victims, gunman dead after shooting at R.I. high school hockey game
10:00 p.m. Update: Authorities have identified the suspect in the shooting.
Three people are dead, including a suspect, following a shooting Monday afternoon during a hockey game at a Rhode Island high school, authorities said.
Three other victims were injured when gunfire erupted around 2:30 p.m. at Dennis M. Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, Police Chief Tina Goncalves said at a news conference. The surviving victims were in critical condition at the hospital as of 4:30 p.m.
“It appears to be a targeted event, that it could be a family dispute,” Goncalves said.
The shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the police chief said. Goncalves declined to provide the identities of the suspect and victims or elaborate on their relationships Monday afternoon.
One of the victims died at the arena, while the other died later at the hospital, the police chief said. Goncalves confirmed that one of the victims who died was a woman, but would not specify the ages of the victims or say whether any were student athletes.
“When you get a call, you think it’s the worst thing, right? And I mean, it’s very serious,” Pawtucket Mayor Donald Grebien said during the news conference. “That said, this is an isolated incident, in some ways. It’s tragic.”
The shooting occurred during a boys hockey game between the Coventry/Johnston School District and the Blackstone Valley Co-op, which includes players from several Rhode Island schools, the Providence Journal reported.
A burst of more than a dozen gunshots can be heard on video of the hockey game recorded by a live sports streaming service, but the shooting takes place off camera. Within seconds, screams are heard, players begin rushing off the ice, and spectators begin to disperse.
Around 5:30 p.m., Coventry School Department Superintendent Don Cowart wrote in an update to families that “all Coventry students have been safely reunited with their loved ones,” the Providence Journal reported.
The principals of North Providence Public Schools and Providence County Day School — two of the districts that are part of the cooperative — also said in messages to families that all students who attended the game were safe, the newspaper reported.
Pawtucket police are interviewing the surviving victims, as well as witnesses, and building a timeline of what happened, Goncalves said. The Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office is part of the investigation.
Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee wrote on social media that he was actively monitoring the shooting at the arena shortly before 3:30 p.m.
The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Boston (ATF Boston) wrote on social media that it was responding to a “reported shooting” in Pawtucket shortly after 3:15 p.m.
Providence police wrote on social media that officers were on scene in Pawtucket, providing assistance around 3:45 p.m.
Officials said they would release more information about the shooting later, likely Tuesday.
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