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Getty ImagesAt least seven people have died after a 14-year-old student opened fire at his home and school on the outskirts of Thailand’s capital Bangkok, according to authorities.
Thailand’s health minister said the student is believed to have shot dead his grandparents at home before opening fire in school, where he killed five teachers before taking his own life.
Twenty-two people were injured in the shooting, nine of whom are in critical condition, the minister said.
The school in Nonthaburi province is a local branch of the renowned Debsirin School, which in Thailand is widely associated with educational prestige.
Police were deployed to the scene during the active shooting.
Authorities earlier warned people to stay away from the area and for those in trapped in the building to hide and wait for rescuers. At one point police warned in a social media post that the shooter was in the school’s computer room.
The Debsirin School, founded in Bangkok in 1885, is one of Thailand’s top secondary schools with branches across the country. It counts many prominent Thai figures as its alumni, from diplomats and athletes to several prime ministers.
A seventh-grade student, who fled the building, told the BBC that she was in class when she saw the shooter walking from room to room.
When he reached her classroom, he shot the teacher standing near the entrance, she said. She added that she couldn’t see anything else after that.
Another student told Reuters that he had thought the sound of gunshots were firecrackers going off, or someone banging an object.
“There were many shots: bang bang bang. Then it went quiet. Then it started again.”
The 9mm handgun used by the shooter belonged to his grandfather, a former teacher, police said.
Students and school staff were seen fleeing from the scene, and those waiting outside the Debsirin School looked visibly distraught.
Other schools in the vicinity suspended classes so students could return home early.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul expressed condolences for the victims of the school shooting. He said the tragedy “shouldn’t have happened”, adding “this is why the government do not allow [citizens] to possess firearms”.
“I don’t just feel sorry for the victims but I feel sorry that this happened. How can this happen in our country,” he said.
Thailand has strict gun laws, which punishes the illegal possession of arms with up to 10 years in jail. But enforcement of these laws has been an issue.
The country has one of the highest rates of civilian gun ownership in South East Asia. It is estimated that about 40% of these guns are illegal.
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