Dallas suspended classes following a suspected school shooting. Emergency personnel were dispatched to the area, and a student suspect who is still at large was sought for.
Four persons were hospitalized on Tuesday afternoon, April 15, 2025, following a shooting at Dallas’ Wilmer-Hutchins High School. Shortly after 1 p.m., police were called to the Langdon Road campus to investigate gunfire.
A student claimed to have heard seven bullets, according to CBS News Texas. Authorities affirmed that the school was safe and that there was no continuing threat around 2:20 p.m.
Three of the four victims were shot, according to the Dallas Fire Department. Their wounds are not thought to be life-threatening. The ages of the fourth victim are unknown, although three of the victims are between the ages of 15 and 18.
They were all transported to local hospitals, such as Methodist Dallas Medical Center, Parkland, and Baylor Scott & White Health.
The culprit, who has been identified as a student, is still at large, according to law enforcement authorities. Authorities have not released any additional identifying information.
Responders from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Dallas police, and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) showed up at the school. Aerial footage shows that they evacuated students toward Eagle Stadium to reunite them with their families. At the time, there were about 900 students on campus.
Stephanie Elizalde, the superintendent of Dallas ISD, subsequently declared that classes will not be held for the rest of the week. She also mentioned that staff and students would have access to mental health specialists to help them through the healing process.
Dallas Independent School District (ISD) Assistant Chief of Police Christina Smith said the firearm was not brought in during the school’s “regular intake time,” and emphasized that “it was not a failure” of school staff, protocols, or the detection machinery in place.
Dallas Mayor Pro Tem Tennell Atkins told Working for All Alike (WFAA) that “There was a [sic] outside student who probably opened the door to let someone in.”
Governor Greg Abbott released a statement offering support to the school district and law enforcement. He said, “Our hearts go out to the victims of this senseless act of violence at Wilmer-Hutchins High School,” and pledged resources to help locate the suspect.
Students who were there during the incident recounted chaotic circumstances and voiced their worries about Wilmer-Hutchins High School’s history of security lapses.
An 18-year-old student told CBS News Texas she was inside a classroom beside the hallway when the shots rang out. “We heard all the gunshots… like seven,” she said. After being told they could leave the classroom, she saw “a lot of blood on the floor.”
She cited persistent security issues and stated that this was not the first shooting at the school. Students frequently carry firearms on campus, and some have posted pictures of weapons on school property on social media, she said.
Another student, speaking to ABC News, said the group was talking when the first shots were fired. “We were still standing there confused, and then we heard more,” the student said. After seeing students run and hearing screams, they returned to the band room to take cover.
A third student, interviewed by ABC News, said someone in the class saw a bullet hit their door window. “That’s when my heart really sunk,” the student said. This student questioned how a firearm could enter the school and criticized the lack of enforcement: “I feel like the security… they weren’t really like doing their job at the moment.”
Aldo, a senior, told WFAA he knew one of the students who was shot and helped him after the incident. He said the student had been running behind him in the cafeteria. “He was basically asking for help. He was like, ‘Hey, I just—something hit me or something,’ and he just said, ‘Take off my boot so I can see it,’” Aldo recalled.
The pupil had a “big gash or wound on his leg” that Aldo found made it hard for him to move and finally caused him to lose feeling in it. He expressed a sense of comfort knowing that his loved ones were safe and that the situation necessitated immediate action.
There have been previous shootings on campus, according to several students. Three days prior, on April 12, a student from Wilmer-Hutchins had shot another kid inside a classroom, according to Fox News. According to Dallas police, the two were acquainted, and they were both 17 years old.
