Mark Garcia Jr., 8, who is a student at the school in Virginia where a six-year-old boy shot his teacher in the chest with a gun, has spoken of the moment he heard gunfire which sent his class into hiding.
The young pupil, who is in second grade, said his teacher heard the gunshots coming from down the hall and immediately got the class to stay quiet in case there was a shooter on site.
‘When it happened the teacher heard it coming from the first grade class. We were walking back to our room and when we got there we all stayed quiet.’
Garcia Jr. told CNN that he managed to stay calm and even tried to comfort others around him.
‘Two people were crying. I went to help them. When the cops came we were marched to the gym and then we were all safe,’ Mark said.
Mark’s father, Mark Anthony Garcia, said when he found out about the shooting, he raced to the school.
‘There was police helicopters everywhere outside, traffic was jammed up. Then there was a two-mile radius cordoned off of parked cars and people running, trying to actually get to the scene, Garcia said.
Richneck Elementary is remaining closed all of this week as the school and community continue discuss ways to navigate through the crisis.
Garcia said local parents had raised concerns prior to the incident.
‘We’ve talked to the principal, we’ve talked to the guidance counselor, we’ve went to town hall meetings, we spoke on zooms, what else are we supposed to do?’ he said.
As a veteran, Garcia said that what happened at the school was the failure of multiple security measures including metal detectors, of which he says the school has just one located in the library.
Earlier on Monday it emerged how the boy responsible for shooting his teacher had stolen his mother’s gun from their home before putting it in his backpack and taking it along to class.
Police have confirmed that the attack was deliberate and not accidental.
The Richneck Elementary School student, who is not being named, is now being detained in a medical facility where professionals continue to psychologically evaluate him.
Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew said on Monday afternoon that more facts still had to be gathered before the department can determine if charges will be filed against the boy’s mother.
Teacher Abby Zwerner, 25, is stable after the life-threatening attack on Friday.
She was shot at point-blank range as the bullet passed through her hand and into her chest.
