At around 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Evergreen High School student Desmond Holly allegedly entered his school with a gun and began shooting at his classmates.

The 16-year-old student kept firing and reloading a revolver, critically injuring two other students before turning the gun on himself, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. He later died at the hospital.

“I have to believe when you bring a gun to school and you continue to fire and reload, you are on a mission,” Sheriff’s Office Spokesperson Jacki Kelley said at a news conference on Thursday, adding that they were incredibly fortunate more people were not injured in the event.

The shooting left the small mountain community stunned. Parents and family members wept and hugged one another as they stood in line to pick up

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