Two students were killed and nine others injured after a shooting at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, prompting a large-scale police manhunt and a prolonged campus lockdown, authorities said on Saturday.
More than 400 law enforcement officers were deployed across the city after a gunman opened fire inside the university’s Barus & Holley engineering building, where students were sitting for examinations. Officials said the suspect fled the scene and remains at large.
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said authorities do not believe there is a “specific, ongoing threat,” but a shelter-in-place order remains in effect for the campus and surrounding neighbourhood to allow investigators carry out searches.
Seven of the injured were listed in critical condition late Saturday, according to Brown University Health. A ninth person was wounded by bullet fragments, officials said. All or nearly all of the victims were students.
Police said the shooter entered the building through unlocked outer doors and opened fire in a classroom before escaping. Investigators are examining why the location was targeted and have recovered shell casings from the scene, though further details have not yet been released.
Authorities released surveillance footage of the suspect, described as a male possibly in his 30s, dressed in black and potentially wearing a mask. The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are assisting local and state police in the investigation.
Brown University President Christina Paxson described the incident as devastating, saying it was “the day one hopes never happens.”
Students were instructed to shelter in place for hours as police secured the area. One student said he and others hid under desks after receiving alerts about an active shooter nearby.
Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee pledged that the suspect would be brought to justice, while President Donald Trump said he had been briefed on the incident and offered prayers for the victims.
The search was complicated by large crowds in the city due to holiday shopping and weekend events. Police said they were reviewing video footage and following up on tips from the public, though no suspect had been apprehended as of Saturday night.
The shooting adds to ongoing concerns over gun violence in the United States, where mass shootings remain far more frequent than in other developed countries.
