5 killed in shooting at junior school in northern California

At least five people are dead following shootings at several locations in Tehama County, California, including an junior school where at least two children were wounded.

Authorities described a chaotic scene in which a gunman appeared to pick targets at random in the rural Northern California county. They said the shootings appear to have begun as a “domestic violence incident” but did not provide details.

The gunman was fatally shot by sheriff’s deputies. His name has not been released. The Tehama County Sheriff’s Office said it was dealing with at least five crime scenes and was trying to assess the number of casualties.

Authorities said the gunfire began in Rancho Tehama, near Red Bluff, about 120 miles northwest of Sacramento.

Tehama County Assistant Sheriff Phil Johnston did not have a total number of victims, but said that “a number” of students had been medically evacuated from the school grounds. A semi-automatic rifle and two handguns that the gunman carried were recovered at one scene, he said.

“We have about 100 law enforcement personnel in Rancho Tehama right now, with multiple, multiple scenes,” Johnston said. “I know that we have (airlifted) a number of students. I know that we have children that were attending school in a safe location at this time.”