‘A gun solved the problem of a gun’: Oregon school shooting leaves grandmother grappling with tragedy

On October 18, a tragic shooting occurred at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, resulting in the deaths of three children and a teacher, with an additional child and educator critically wounded.

An armed bystander intervened and killed the 16-year-old gunman.

Kristen Vanetsky, who moved to Bend for safety, expressed devastation over the loss of innocence inflicted on the community and highlighted the contradictions in gun control solutions.

The city, known for its natural beauty, is grappling with the aftermath, as residents struggle to understand the motive behind the attack.

BEND, Oct 18 — Kristen Vanetsky and her family moved to Bend, Oregon, after a shooting in their New Mexico neighbourhood, choosing Silver Rail elementary for her grandson because they considered it safer.

But their world was shattered this week when a 16-year-old entered the school and opened fire, shooting dead three children and a teacher, and leaving another child and educator critically wounded.

An armed bystander who pursued the gunman into the school shot and killed him.

The tragic events, Vanetsky told AFP on Friday morning outside the school, are “unthinkable.”

The 52-year-old, whose 10-year-old grandson attends the school, said the mass shooting “just took away all the innocence” of the school’s children, disrupting their sense of safety.

She said she went to the school “trying to make sense of what’s going on.”

“Who would do this to little kids?”

Thursday’s massacre in Bend — a city of about 100,000 people in central Oregon — is the latest of 371 mass shootings that have occurred in the United States just this year, according to the tracker Gun Violence Archive.

It “just doesn’t stop,” Vanetsky said.

She said she is grateful for the actions of the man who fired back against the shooter, but notes the scenario’s inherent contradictions, which underscore the ongoing debate over gun control in the United States.

“It’s very weird, to have a gun solve the problem of a gun,” she said. “I can’t wrap my mind around it.”

“The whole thing could’ve been a lot worse had somebody not stepped in and shot the shooter,” she continued. But now, “the shooter has to live the rest of his life knowing that he shot a 16-year-old to keep other babies from being shot.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” she said tearfully.

Bend, a popular destination for its natural beauty and outdoor recreation scene, “is devastated,” Vanetsky said.

“We’re a close town of people, and we look out for each other.”

And yet, the perpetrator of Thursday’s attack was a resident of the city itself.

Authorities have not yet offered details regarding motive or any connection to the school. They did specify that a long gun was used, and media reports indicate the shooter’s mother had purchased the weapon.

“I don’t understand why a mom would buy a teenage boy a weapon like that,” said Vanetsky.

Less than 24 hours after the shooting, Silver Rail Elementary School, which serves more than 400 students, was cordoned off with yellow crime-scene tape.

A few cars and bicycles remained stranded in the parking lot.

At the school’s main entrance, neighbours and parents had created a memorial with flowers, candles and toys to honour the children — aged five, eight and 11 — and the educator whose lives were cut short Thursday.

Vanetsky said her grandson was struggling at home in the wake of the trauma he’d been through.

“My grandson should be in his classroom, with all of his friends,” she said, her gaze turning towards the school’s second floor. “Everybody should be in there learning, having fun, looking forward to their weekend, and it’s just vacant.”

“There’s nothing. Even the birds are not here.” — AFP

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10 月 18 日，俄勒冈州本德市银轨小学发生一起悲惨的枪击事件，导致三名儿童和一名教师死亡，另有一名儿童和一名教育工作者重伤。

一名持枪路人介入并击毙了这名16岁的枪手。

为了安全而搬到本德的克里斯汀·瓦内茨基对社区遭受的无辜损失表示痛心，并强调了枪支管制解决方案中的矛盾之处。

这座以自然美景闻名的城市正在努力应对袭击事件的后果，居民们也难以理解袭击背后的动机。

本德，10 月 18 日——克里斯汀·瓦内茨基和她的家人在新墨西哥州的社区发生枪击事件后搬到了俄勒冈州的本德，他们为孙子选择了银轨小学，因为他们认为那里更安全。

但本周，他们的世界被彻底摧毁了。一名 16 岁的少年闯入学校开枪，造成三名儿童和一名教师死亡，另有一名儿童和一名教师身受重伤。

一名持枪路人追着枪手进入学校，开枪将其击毙。

瓦内茨基周五上午在学校外告诉法新社，这些悲剧事件“令人难以置信”。

这位 52 岁的老人，他的 10 岁孙子在这所学校就读，他说，这起大规模枪击事件“夺走了”学校孩子们所有的纯真，破坏了他们的安全感。

她说她去学校是为了“弄明白到底发生了什么事”。

“谁会对小孩子做出这种事？”

据枪支暴力档案追踪网站统计，周四发生在俄勒冈州中部城市本德（人口约 10 万）的大屠杀，是今年美国发生的 371 起大规模枪击事件中的最新一起。

“这根本停不下来，”瓦内茨基说。

她说，她很感激那位向枪手开枪还击的男子的行为，但她也指出，这种情况本身存在矛盾，这凸显了美国正在进行的关于枪支管制的辩论。

“用枪来解决枪的问题，这太奇怪了，”她说。“我简直无法理解。”

“如果不是有人挺身而出击毙了枪手，事情可能会更糟，”她继续说道。“但现在，枪手余生都必须背负着这样的罪孽：他为了保护其他婴儿免受枪击，射杀了一名16岁的少年。”

“这说不通，”她含泪说道。

瓦内茨基说，本德市因其自然美景和户外休闲活动而成为热门旅游目的地，“遭受了毁灭性的打击”。

“我们镇上的人们关系很紧密，大家都会互相照顾。”

然而，周四袭击事件的肇事者正是该市居民。

当局尚未公布作案动机或与学校的任何关联。他们明确指出，枪手使用的是一支长枪，媒体报道显示，枪手的母亲购买了这支枪。

“我不明白为什么一位母亲会给十几岁的男孩买这样的武器，”瓦内茨基说。

枪击事件发生不到 24 小时，拥有 400 多名学生的银轨小学就被黄色警戒线封锁了。

停车场里还停着几辆汽车和自行车。

在学校正门，邻居和家长们用鲜花、蜡烛和玩具设立了一个纪念碑，以纪念周四英年早逝的五岁、八岁和十一岁的孩子们以及那位教育工作者。

瓦内茨基说，她的孙子经历了创伤后，在家中过得很艰难。

“我的孙子应该在教室里，和他的朋友们在一起，”她说着，目光转向学校的二楼。“每个人都应该在那里学习、玩耍，期待着周末的到来，可现在那里却空无一人。”

“什么都没有。连鸟都不在。”——法新社

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“为什么会发生这种事？”俄勒冈州家庭帮助孩子们应对校园枪击案带来的创伤

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