Teacher tackled Oregon school shooter; parent shot him dead

A 16-year-old boy forced his way into an elementary school in Bend, Oregon, on Thursday and opened fire in a special-education classroom, killing three children and a teacher and wounding two others. A second teacher in the room threw her mobile phone at the shooter and tackled him, fighting to control his weapon until the father of two students entered the classroom and shot the attacker dead.

The shooter, Griffin John II, was a former student at Silver Rail Elementary School. He arrived at the school armed with a hunting rifle and began firing outside the building, shooting at vehicles in the car park. He then shot through locked glass doors to break into the school and made his way to a special-education classroom, where he opened fire on those inside.

Three children, aged 5, 8 and 11, were killed, along with the teacher, Megan Lambert, 25. A second teacher and a 7-year-old child were wounded and taken to hospital.

Four killed in Oregon school shooting (Photo: social media)

According to Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz, the second teacher in the classroom threw her mobile phone at the gunman, then charged at him and fought to wrestle the rifle away. She was not injured in the struggle, and Chief Krantz said her actions likely prevented further casualties.

While the teacher was fighting the shooter, Kaylob Jiamenko, 36, the father of two students at the school, entered the classroom. He had seen the gunman outside the building, followed him in, retrieved a handgun from his vehicle, and entered the room. When he saw the teacher struggling with the armed teenager, he fired several shots, killing him.

Police said Jiamenko acted before officers arrived at the scene. Chief Krantz praised both the teacher and the father, saying the teacher had shown extraordinary courage in fighting for her students, and that the father's intervention had undoubtedly saved lives.

The shooting has shaken Bend, a city of around 100,000 residents. Parents waited for hours to receive information about their children, and residents have been arriving at the school to leave flowers, candles and stuffed animals in memory of the victims.

Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances of the attack and the shooter's motive. According to reports, the boy had previously attended the school but was not enrolled in the local education system at the time of the shooting. No clear motive for the rampage has been released.