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A shooter dressed in black killed at least two people and wounded eight others at Brown University on Saturday during final exams, authorities said, prompting a massive police search across the Ivy League campus and surrounding neighborhoods.
The suspect, described as a male wearing dark clothing, was last seen leaving the university’s engineering building where the shooting occurred, according to Timothy O’Hara, deputy chief of police. Authorities believe the shooter used a handgun, a law enforcement official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.
Police officers fanned out across campus and into nearby residential areas filled with stately brick homes, searching academic buildings, backyards and porches for hours after the attack. A shelter-in-place order was issued for areas near the campus, which sits close to downtown Providence.
“The unthinkable has happened,” Democratic Gov. Dan McKee said in a statement.
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said all available resources were being used to locate the suspect and urged residents and students to remain indoors until authorities lifted the order.
Eight people with gunshot wounds were transported to Rhode Island Hospital, spokesperson Kelly Brennan said. Six victims were in critical but stable condition, one was listed as critical, and another was stable.
University officials initially told students and staff that a suspect had been taken into custody, but later clarified that police were still searching for a suspect or suspects. Smiley said a person initially detained was later determined not to be involved.
The shooting occurred inside the Barus & Holley building, a seven-story complex that houses Brown’s School of Engineering and physics department. Engineering design exams were underway at the time of the attack.
President Donald Trump said he had been briefed on the shooting.
“All we can do right now is pray for the victims,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “It’s a shame.”
The FBI said it was assisting local and state authorities.
Rhode Island has some of the nation’s strictest gun laws. Last year, the Democratic-controlled Legislature passed an assault weapons ban set to take effect next summer, though the law does not prohibit possession of firearms already owned.
Brown University enrolls about 7,300 undergraduates and more than 3,000 graduate students.
