Huntsville Mayor Nancy Alcock asked for a moment at the start of Huntsville’s Planning Committee meeting to reflect on the victims of a shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., on Tuesday.
“I heard the mayor from Tumbler Ridge this morning on the radio, and it was absolutely devastating,” said Alcock. “It’s a community of a little over 2000 people. He said someone had asked him, ‘Did you know any of them?’ and he said, ‘We’re a little over 2000, we know all of them, and it’s one big family.’ So it just struck me what an incredible tragedy, and what he talked about was the need for love and support. So I just thought it was really important that we reflect on that today and just think about them and embrace them with love, as he suggested.”
Planning Council Chair, Councillor Bob Stone, asked those in attendance at the February 11 meeting to stand up and hold a moment of silence.
According to the latest reports, the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., has left nine dead, including the suspect, and 27 injuries.
The shooter has been identified as Jesse Van Rootselaar, 18, who died of self-inflicted wounds. Van Rootselaar is said to have embarked on a mass shooting that left eight people dead and 27 injured, at two locations: at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School and at a residence in Tumbler Ridge. At the residence, authorities said the bodies of an adult female and a male youth were discovered, said to be Van Rootselaar’s mother and step-brother.
At the school, which Van Rootselaar had allegedly attended and dropped out of about four years ago, police identified the body of an adult female educator, and youth between the ages of 12 and 17, comprised of three female and two male students.
According to the RCMP, police had attended the suspect’s residence on multiple occasions over the past few years due to mental health concerns.
Van Rootselaar was born a biological male who is said to have begun transitioning to female approximately six years ago and identified as female.
Police have not confirmed a motive for the shooting.
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