Eight Dead in British Columbia School Shooting, Suspect Had Mental Health History

TUMBLER RIDGE, British Columbia — An 18-year-old gunman with a documented history of mental health contacts with police killed eight people, including five middle school students, in a small Canadian mountain community Tuesday, marking the nation's deadliest mass shooting since 2020.

Police identified the suspect as Jesse Van Rootselaar, who authorities say first killed her mother and stepbrother at the family home before attacking Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, a facility serving just 175 students in grades 7 through 12.

The victims at the school included a 39-year-old teacher and five students ages 12 to 13, according to Royal Canadian Mounted Police Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald. More than 25 others were wounded in the attack, which ended when the suspect died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

"There is no information at this point that anyone was specifically targeted," McDonald said Wednesday, clarifying that the suspect was not related to any of the school victims.

The massacre began at the family home, where the 18-year-old's 39-year-old mother and 11-year-old stepbrother were found dead. A young family member escaped to a neighbor, who called police. Officers arrived at the school two minutes after receiving reports of shots fired there.

"Parents, grandparents, sisters, brothers in Tumbler Ridge will wake up without someone they love," said Prime Minister Mark Carney, his voice breaking during an address to Parliament. "The nation mourns with you, and Canada stands by you."

Carney announced that flags at government buildings would fly at half-staff for seven days. "We will get through this," he said.

The shooting has reignited debate over Canada's gun laws, which are significantly stricter than those in the United States. The government has implemented increasingly restrictive firearm policies in recent years, including a 2020 ban on assault-style weapons following the country's previous deadliest mass shooting in Nova Scotia.

Shelley Quist, whose neighbor lost her 12-year-old son, described the community's anguish. "We heard his mom. She was in the street crying. She wanted her son's body," Quist said.

Her own 17-year-old son, Darian, had been in the school library just 15 minutes before the shooter arrived. Students upstairs in the library bore the brunt of the attack, while Darian and others barricaded themselves in classrooms using desks to block doors.

Police recovered a long gun and a modified handgun from the scene. The suspect's history of mental health contacts with police has raised questions about whether warning signs were missed, though authorities have not released details of those prior interactions.

School shootings remain rare in Canada despite the country's proximity to the United States, where such incidents have become increasingly common. The Tumbler Ridge attack comes as communities across North America grapple with the psychological toll of gun violence on students and educators.