'Multiple fatalities' at Santa Fe High School shooting

Law enforcement officers are responding to Santa Fe High School following a shooting incident in this Harris County Sheriff office, Santa Fe, Texas, U.S., photo released on May 18, 2018. Courtesy HCSO/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY.

SANTA FE, Texas – At least eight people died Friday morning in gunfire at Santa Fe High school, law enforcement officials confirmed, while at least 12 others were injured, according to area hospitals.

Police arrested a suspect and detained a second person, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said via Twitter.

The bloodshed 30 miles south of Houston is the worst mass shooting in America since February, when 17 people were gunned down at a high school in Parkland, Florida, according to a database of shootings maintained by the Washington Post.

UPDATE 10:47 a.m.: Tenth grader Dakota Shrader said he heard alarms go off and students exited to a grassy area, waiting for an all-clear as in a normal fire drill. Then he heard three gunshots and screams of  "Run! Run!"

Shrader ran as fast as he could to a wooded area, started having an asthma attack and called his mother.

"The world, I just don't like what it's becoming," Shrader said. "Every school shooting, kids getting killed, innocent kids getting killed. No family should have to suffer that just because somebody wants to be selfish and go out and hurt other people. It's just not right at all."

10:45 a.m.: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued a statement: "The thoughts and prayers of all Texans are with the people of Santa Fe and those affected by today's tragic shooting. As horrific reports come out of Santa Fe High School, my office stands ready to assist local law enforcement as needed."

10:40 a.m.: Trey Lemley, 17, said he was in the school's first floor art room when a shooter walked in, his sister, Courtney Lemley, 19, said.

Trey dropped his phone and barricaded himself inside one of the room's two closets, she said. When he left, he saw three bodies and pools of blood.

Courtney and her boyfriend, 19-year-old Austin Evans, graduated from the school last year. They said the art room is located near a main, back exit of the school, and the room itself has an exit that leads to the parking lot.

After being turned away from the school, Courtney and Evans walked to Arcadian First Baptist Church, where Courtney's mother works.

In the parking lot, National Guardsmen gathered supplies before driving towards the school in a military vehicle. Small groups began to gather in the church's parking lot, staring at their cell phones and sharing details they heard from friends and from news outlets

10:35 a.m.:  The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston has received three patients, the hospital reported on social media. Two are adults and one is under 18.

Clear Lake Regional Medical Center in Webster received seven injured students, a spokeswoman for that facility said. Previous reports that an injured officer was taken there are wrong, she said. Two other injured students were taken to Mainland Medical Center in Texas City, she said.

The conditions of all of the injured are unknown.

An unidentified law enforcement officer was shot, but sources said he was "clipped" and was not seriously injured.

One source said the gunman was a male, but could provide no further information.

The shooter has been "arrested and secured," said Santa Fe HS Assistant Principal Dr. Cris Richardson.

Several other students as well as an officer was injured in the shooting.

Joe Gamaldi with the Houston Police Officers Union tweeted, "Please keep the officers in your prayers as one officer is being life flighted to the hospital."

Students described the gunfire, which broke out about 7:30 a.m.

Junior Liberty Wheeler, 14, was in class when she heard five shots ring out  near the art room.

Her teacher told them to run toward the theater department's storage room, where they hid for 45 minutes before being escorted outside by the SWAT team.

"You could smell the gunpowder that came from the gun," Wheeler recalled as she was escorted out of the building. "We were all scared because it was near us."

Paige Curry, a junior at the school, said "I was sitting in my classroom and I heard very loud booms and I didn't know what they were. I was confused but after I heard screaming, I figured out what they were, got up immediately and started to run. I almost ran out of the school but I hid instead with the other students. I was there for maybe 30 minutes I was on the phone with my mom the whole time. They found us and escorted us."

"There were a lot of people, a lot of different suits so I wasn't really sure but I think they were SWAT."

"I was very, very scared but I managed to keep calm, especially with my mom on the phone."

"I heard people were hurt and the gunshots were from a classroom maybe three doors down. I heard five [shots] maybe. It was one boom, then another boom very loud. It wasn't rapid."

The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston is treating two patients, their conditions not yet being disclosed, said spokesman Raul Reyes. He said more patients are expected, including one currently being transported from the branch's League City hospital.

He said a helicopter with at least one patient is on the way and more ambulances are expected.

Officers in tactical gear were deployed into the school. Outside, groups of students evacuated from the building are being patted down by authorities.

Deputies from the Harris County Sheriff's Office were sent to assist Galveston County officers on the scene, according to a tweet by HCSO Sheriff Ed Gonzalez.

The ATF also confirmed it  responded to the scene.

Richardson said he could not confirm whether there was more than one shooter.

"We hope the worst is over," he said.

No further information was immediately available.

HCSO/Handout via REUTERS