MILAN — The Canadian Olympic Committee said it is “heartbroken” by a school shooting in British Columbia that left at least seven people dead and many others wounded.
Team Canada issued a statement at the Milan Cortina Olympics on Wednesday, the morning after the deadly shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School.
“We are heartbroken by the news of the horrific school shooting that occurred in British Columbia. Our thoughts are with the families who have lost loved ones, those who are injured, and the entire Tumbler Ridge community. Team Canada stands with everyone affected as they navigate difficult days ahead,” the statement said.
Olympic men’s hockey coach Jon Cooper says the tragic shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C. hits close to home.
Cooper grew up in Prince George, B.C., the closest major city to Tumbler Ridge, and remembers the growth of the community.
He says he has stayed in the town’s hotel and had friends who worked there.
While he hasn’t been back in a long time, he says his heart goes out to the affected families.
Canadian authorities said Tuesday that there were 10 deaths in total. The school shooting left seven dead, authorities said, while two more people were found dead at a nearby home. A woman who police believe to be the shooter also was killed.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said more than 25 people were injured, including two who were hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.
Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, located in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies, has 175 students from Grades 7 to 12, according to the provincial government’s website.
The town is more than 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) north of Vancouver, near the border with Alberta.