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18 Killed in German School Shooting
By JOCHEN WIESIGEL
The Associated Press
ERFURT, Germany (April 26) - An expelled student opened fire inside a school Friday in eastern Germany in a shooting spree that claimed at least 18 lives and wounded at least six others, police said.
The 19-year-old former student, who was kicked out of school several weeks ago, was among those killed, who police said were mostly adults but included at least two children. Police commandos conducted a room-to-room search of the building, where at one point during the rampage students were trapped.
Police had initially said a second gunman was involved, but told a press conference later that could not be confirmed.
The shooting at the Johann Gutenberg Gymnasium recalled the April 1999 shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., which killed 12 students and a teacher. The two teen-age gunmen, both students at the school, committed suicide.
Witnesses said the gunman Friday was dressed all in black with a cap and gloves. During the shooting, a handwritten sign reading ''HILFE'' - Help - was pasted to a fourth-floor window and the face of a girl could be seen through a window.
Hundreds of students from grades five through 12 were in the school in the eastern city of Erfurt when the shooting began just before noon.
Among the dead were at least two teachers and a police officer who was among a group of policemen who charged into the building after a janitor called for help, police said.
Shocked and upset students who fled the shooting reported seeing a man dressed all in black roaming the hallways with a gun.
''I heard shooting and thought it was a joke,'' said 13-year-old Melanie Steinbrueck, chocking back tears. ''But then I saw a teacher dead in the hallway in front of Room 209 and a gunman in black carrying a weapon.''
''The guy was dressed all in black - gloves, cap, everything was black,'' said Juliane Blank, 13. ''He must have opened the door without being heard and forced his way into the classroom.''
''We ran out into the hallways. We just wanted to get out,'' she said.
Police said they received a call at 11:05 a.m. from the school janitor, who said someone was shooting in the building. An initial team of officers arrived on the scene shortly after and entered the school. One of those policemen was killed in the shooting.
A team of police commandos later went into the building to try to free students trapped inside.
Outside the school, a police officer with a megaphone urged parents to register their children's names before leaving the scene. Groups of dazed and shocked students huddled in the street, hugging and crying. Ambulances and police cars massed in front of the school.
Sixth-grader Martin Streng said he was in math class when he heard gunfire coming from a classroom down the hall. As he and other students filed into the hallway to flee the building, they saw a man with a gun down the corridor behind them, Streng said.
It was Germany's second school shooting in recent months. In February, a 22-year-old German who recently lost his job, shot and killed two former bosses and his old high school's principal in a rampage outside Munich.
AP-NY-04-26-02 1022EDT
18 Killed in German School Shooting
By JOCHEN WIESIGEL
The Associated Press
ERFURT, Germany (April 26) - An expelled student opened fire inside a school Friday in eastern Germany in a shooting spree that claimed at least 18 lives and wounded at least six others, police said.
The 19-year-old former student, who was kicked out of school several weeks ago, was among those killed, who police said were mostly adults but included at least two children. Police commandos conducted a room-to-room search of the building, where at one point during the rampage students were trapped.
Police had initially said a second gunman was involved, but told a press conference later that could not be confirmed.
The shooting at the Johann Gutenberg Gymnasium recalled the April 1999 shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., which killed 12 students and a teacher. The two teen-age gunmen, both students at the school, committed suicide.
Witnesses said the gunman Friday was dressed all in black with a cap and gloves. During the shooting, a handwritten sign reading ''HILFE'' - Help - was pasted to a fourth-floor window and the face of a girl could be seen through a window.
Hundreds of students from grades five through 12 were in the school in the eastern city of Erfurt when the shooting began just before noon.
Among the dead were at least two teachers and a police officer who was among a group of policemen who charged into the building after a janitor called for help, police said.
Shocked and upset students who fled the shooting reported seeing a man dressed all in black roaming the hallways with a gun.
''I heard shooting and thought it was a joke,'' said 13-year-old Melanie Steinbrueck, chocking back tears. ''But then I saw a teacher dead in the hallway in front of Room 209 and a gunman in black carrying a weapon.''
''The guy was dressed all in black - gloves, cap, everything was black,'' said Juliane Blank, 13. ''He must have opened the door without being heard and forced his way into the classroom.''
''We ran out into the hallways. We just wanted to get out,'' she said.
Police said they received a call at 11:05 a.m. from the school janitor, who said someone was shooting in the building. An initial team of officers arrived on the scene shortly after and entered the school. One of those policemen was killed in the shooting.
A team of police commandos later went into the building to try to free students trapped inside.
Outside the school, a police officer with a megaphone urged parents to register their children's names before leaving the scene. Groups of dazed and shocked students huddled in the street, hugging and crying. Ambulances and police cars massed in front of the school.
Sixth-grader Martin Streng said he was in math class when he heard gunfire coming from a classroom down the hall. As he and other students filed into the hallway to flee the building, they saw a man with a gun down the corridor behind them, Streng said.
It was Germany's second school shooting in recent months. In February, a 22-year-old German who recently lost his job, shot and killed two former bosses and his old high school's principal in a rampage outside Munich.
AP-NY-04-26-02 1022EDT
