Morning prayer began – then the murderer shot

Minneapolis

The creepy details – barricaded the door

Emil Forsberg

Updated 19.24 | Published 19.15

The children were sitting on the church pews when the first shots were fired through the window.

But there was no escape.

The doors were barricaded from the outside.

It was just after eight on Wednesday morning when a lone perpetrator opened fire through the window of the Annunciation Church in Minneapolis.

In the pews were schoolchildren who had just started their morning prayer, just as they do every Wednesday.

– The students are sitting on one side and their parents in the congregation are sitting on the other, says Sky News' David Blevins.

16 children, between 6 and 14 years old, were hit by the bullets. Two of them have died from their injuries.

 

A massive police operation was launched after the shooting. Photo: Bruce Kluckhohn/AP

“It went on forever”

A witness says he heard between 30 and 50 shots fired within three to four minutes.

– It went on forever. But when it was over, he just ran away, Bill Bienemann tells Sky News 

According to Bienemann, the shooting was sporadic.

– I know what gunfire sounds like and I was shocked. It sounded like a semi-automatic weapon. It certainly wasn’t a gun. So he must have reloaded several times.

According to Police Chief Brian O’Hara, some of the doors to the church had been barricaded from the outside. He states that the perpetrator had access to a rifle, a shotgun and a pistol.

 

Mayor Jacob Frey outside the crime scene. Photo: Abbie Parr/AP

“First week of school”

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey calls the incident horrific.

– We don’t want your prayers. These kids were praying when this happened, it was their first week of school.

Six children are currently being treated at Children’s Hospital of Minnesota. Another 11 are at Healthcare Hospital.

– We are dealing with gunshot wounds from a speeding gun. Gunshot wounds can be very problematic and require a lot of resources, but we are used to gunshot wounds here, says doctor Thomas Wyatt.

 

Six children are still being treated in the hospital. Photo: Richard Tsong-Taatarii/AP