A shooting Saturday at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, left two people dead and at least eight others critically injured. Authorities were still searching for a suspect hours afterward.
The shooting occurred on a Saturday afternoon in a campus building where final exams were ongoing. The suspect was described as dressed in black and reportedly fled the building on foot.
This violent incident led to a shelter-in-place directive for the wider university area while law enforcement initiated a manhunt. Providence Mayor Brett Smiley stated, We have all available resources dedicated to capturing the suspect.
Sadly, today is a day that the city of Providence and the state of Rhode Island prayed would never come, the mayor expressed, echoing sentiments of sorrow and dismay over the act of gun violence. We have heard of horrific acts in other places, but not here.
Brown University, a private institution, has approximately 7,300 undergraduate students and over 3,000 graduate students enrolled.
This incident joins a troubling list of deadly shootings that have plagued several U.S. college campuses over the years. Past tragic events include incidents at Kentucky State University, where one student died, and at the University of Virginia, which witnessed multiple fatalities.
