Ten Dead in Tumbler Ridge School Shooting as Canada Reels From One of Its Worst Mass Killings

A mass shooting at a secondary school in the remote British Columbia town of Tumbler Ridge has left nine people dead and more than 25 injured, making it one of the deadliest attacks in Canadian history .

The tragedy — which unfolded across a school and a nearby home on Tuesday afternoon — has exposed the vulnerability of Canada's remote communities, where small police detachments and limited medical infrastructure must cope with emergencies that would strain far larger cities. It has also prompted Prime Minister Mark Carney to cancel his attendance at the Munich Security Conference, a signal that the political fallout may extend well beyond expressions of grief .

The attack

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said they received reports of an active shooter at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School at approximately 1:20 p.m. local time on Tuesday, February 10 . Officers from the town's small detachment arrived within two minutes and entered the building to locate the threat Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public..

Inside the school, police found six people dead along with the suspected shooter, who appeared to have died from a self-inflicted injury . A seventh victim died while being transported to hospital . Two additional bodies were discovered at a nearby residence in what authorities believe is a connected incident, bringing the total death toll to ten, including the suspect .

More than 25 people were injured, including two with life-threatening injuries who were airlifted to larger hospitals . The Shock Trauma Air Rescue Service (STARS) dispatched an aircraft from Grande Prairie, Alberta — a response that highlights the logistical challenges of providing emergency care in communities hundreds of kilometres from major trauma centres Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public..

The suspect

A police active shooter alert circulated during the incident described the suspect as "female in a dress with brown hair" . RCMP Superintendent Ken Floyd confirmed at a press conference that the individual described in the alert was the same person found dead in the school Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public.. Canadian media noted that a female shooter would be highly unusual; research consistently shows that mass shootings in North America are almost exclusively carried out by men, making the gender dimension of this case a likely focus of future investigation Canada shooting: 10 dead including suspect in attack on Tumbler Ridge high school, police saytheguardian.com·SecondaryMore than 25 people are injured, including two with life-threatening injuries, after shooting at secondary school and local residence Tumbler Ridge school shooting: latest updates What we know so far about the Tumbler Ridge shooting Nine people have been killed and dozens injured after an assailant opened fire at a school in western Canada, in one of the deadliest mass shootings in the country’s history. The suspect was later found dead from what appeared to be a self-inflicted injury..

Police said they had identified the shooter but declined to release the name or confirm the suspect's sex, citing privacy concerns . Floyd said investigators would "struggle to determine the 'why'" but would pursue all leads to establish what transpired . The investigation has been transferred to the RCMP's Major Crimes Unit Canada: 10 dead in Tumbler Ridge school shootingdw.com·SecondaryA shooting at a high school in the Canadian province of British Columbia left eight dead, including the suspect, authorities said on Tuesday. Two more people were found dead at a nearby home in what is believed to be a connected incident, authorities added. "As part of the initial response to the active shooting, police entered the school to locate the threat. During the search, officers located multiple victims..

A community shattered

Tumbler Ridge is a remote municipality of roughly 2,400 people in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, more than 1,000 kilometres northeast of Vancouver . The secondary school serves approximately 160 students in grades 7 through 12 — meaning the attack directly affected a significant share of the entire student body Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public..

Mayor Darryl Krakowka told reporters he had lived in the town for nearly two decades and likely knew every victim personally. The residents, he said, are not citizens to him but family Canada shooting: 10 dead including suspect in attack on Tumbler Ridge high school, police saytheguardian.com·SecondaryMore than 25 people are injured, including two with life-threatening injuries, after shooting at secondary school and local residence Tumbler Ridge school shooting: latest updates What we know so far about the Tumbler Ridge shooting Nine people have been killed and dozens injured after an assailant opened fire at a school in western Canada, in one of the deadliest mass shootings in the country’s history. The suspect was later found dead from what appeared to be a self-inflicted injury..

Trent Ernst, a local journalist with the Tumbler RidgeLines newspaper, said incidents like school shootings were "not even considered a possibility in a place like Tumbler Ridge" . Student Darian Quist told CBC Radio that students barricaded doors with tables and remained inside for more than two hours before police escorted them out . About 100 students and staff were eventually evacuated safely Canada shooting: 10 dead including suspect in attack on Tumbler Ridge high school, police saytheguardian.com·SecondaryMore than 25 people are injured, including two with life-threatening injuries, after shooting at secondary school and local residence Tumbler Ridge school shooting: latest updates What we know so far about the Tumbler Ridge shooting Nine people have been killed and dozens injured after an assailant opened fire at a school in western Canada, in one of the deadliest mass shootings in the country’s history. The suspect was later found dead from what appeared to be a self-inflicted injury..

Government response and political implications

Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was "devastated by today's horrific shootings" and suspended a planned trip to Halifax and the Munich Security Conference . British Columbia Premier David Eby called the attack an "unimaginable tragedy" and said it was "the kind of thing that feels like it happens in other places and not close to home" Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public.. Public Safety Minister Nina Krieger commended the RCMP's rapid two-minute response, saying "speed and professionalism saved lives today" Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public..

The political response will likely intensify in the coming days. Canada significantly tightened its gun laws after the 2020 Nova Scotia massacre, banning over 1,500 models of assault-style firearms, and further restrictions on handgun sales took effect in 2022. Yet the Tumbler Ridge attack suggests that legislative measures alone may not prevent mass violence in communities where warning signs can go unnoticed and access to mental health services is limited Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public..

A pattern of escalation

The attack is the second-deadliest school shooting in Canadian history, behind the 1989 massacre at Montreal's L'Ecole Polytechnique, where 14 students were killed in an attack targeting women . In 2016, five people died in a shooting in La Loche, Saskatchewan — another remote community where the tragedy exposed gaps in rural support systems Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public..

The concentration of Canada's worst school shootings in small, isolated towns raises difficult questions about resource allocation. Communities like Tumbler Ridge operate with minimal RCMP detachments and health centres that are designed for routine care, not mass-casualty events. The Code Orange declaration at Tumbler Ridge's health centre — triggering a mass-casualty protocol — underscored how quickly a small facility can be overwhelmed Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public..

Canada's strict gun laws have historically resulted in far fewer mass shootings than in the neighbouring United States Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public.. But as the Tumbler Ridge attack demonstrates, the gap between urban and rural emergency preparedness remains a policy blind spot that lawmakers will be under increasing pressure to address.

The school has been closed for the rest of the week, and counselling services are being made available to students, families, and community members Tumbler Ridge mass shooting: What we know about Canada’s school attackaljazeera.com·SecondaryCanadian police say 10 dead in British Columbia school shooting At least nine people were killed and 27 were injured in a mass school shooting on Tuesday in a town in northeastern British Columbia, the Canadian police has said. A suspected attacker was also found dead from what appeared to be a self‑inflicted injury, police reported, adding that authorities do not believe there were any other suspects or an ongoing threat to the public..