COLlive.com & Chabad.org
At least 17 people were killed, including students and adults, and many others injured when a former student opened fire in a high school in Parkland, Florida.
Victims were taken to local hospitals, and three remain in critical condition.
Nikolas Cruz, 19, was taken into custody by police in nearby Coral Springs, Fla., about an hour after the assault at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. He had previously been expelled from the school, and on Wednesday, was heavily armed.
During an afternoon of terror, hundreds of students were evacuated from the scene as police surrounded the area.
“It was a wrenching scene,” Rabbi Mendy Gutnick, youth director at Chabad of Parkland, told Chabad.org. “Parents were gathered outside while their children were still inside of the school, and they had no way to save them.”
“Together with Rabbi Shuey Biston, I rushed to the school to give support to anyone we could. The school is at least 40 percent Jewish, so we know many of the students and their parents,” he continued.
“We went from parent to parent and tried to offer as much comfort as possible, and helped them recite Psalms, praying for the students and faculty in the school.”
Gutnick said he is coordinating with fellow Chabad rabbis from nearby Coral Springs, home of many of the students, to hold an evening of prayer, consolation and a memorial later this week.
Local 10 News, an ABC affiliate, named one of the dead students as Jaime Guttenberg, who was Jewish.
Rabbi Biston told local TV that authorities “assembled all parents whose children are not accounted for at the various hospitals and told them to come back to the meeting point at the Marriot Hotel.”
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Well said!
Sorry to say this but we need to look at students in a different way and stop EXPELLING students from our schools so easily and without an alternate plan for them IN PLACE. I’m not saying its never the solution but the Yeshiva my son grew up in (here in Crown Heights) Expelled my son during his Mesivta years and about two or three friends during his Yeshiva years. One of his friends either overdosed or committed suicide and is no longer with us 🙁 We need to look at the whole student and his circumstances, and if all they… Read more »
If there is a child that wants to shoot people that attend a certain school, he will find a way to get in,, even if you have to be buzzed in
Only Jewish Schools keep their doors locked, and Daycares. High Schools do not keep their doors locked and Public High Schools are often a series of exits and entrances, sometimes they have multiple buildings and kids come and go as they please. For example my Freshman class had over 1,000 students. Now this school had over 3,000 students. This is very different than our small town Jewish Schools that have maybe 100 kids attending the high school.
He didn’t need to be buzzed in, he just got in.
BH in our schools, no matter how hurt a student may be, we have never had such an occurrence. Instead they talk, campaign, try to make changes and make things better. Perhaps this can serve as a lesson- does it need to take a shooting for a student to be heard? Appreciate that our students are not using any violence against others, ever, no matter how much pain they’re in. Too many though have made the choice to use violence against themselves, ending their precious lives way too young. Open up, show that you care and what to hear, so… Read more »
4 jewish children
1 adult jew. Teacher
Of course all 17 were tragically murdered and mourned.
This was a very disturbed expelled student
And obtained the weapon. Legally.
Mental health issue is the most serious issue
Yes!
they need to reform where it counts the most
and so do we all
we need to be careful what we and our children watch and are involved with
Read what the Rebbe said about TVs
the Rebbe’s approach to prevent such things and shifting the mind set of the youth growing up in western culture.
TV, violent movies and video games don’t help the situation either as the Rebbe stated.
apparantly this boy had been expelled from the school. If that is in fact true, then there was an issue which may have not been dealt with. If they expell instead of trying to have the family and school social workers (etc) work it out, then they are just sending the “problems” away from themselves. although I don’t know the full story, I’m just saying that sometimes expelling is just passing off the problem
ALL TEACHERS SHOULD CARRY GUNS THATS THE ONLY OPTION !!!!
Of course it’s not the guns: “guns don’t kill people, people kill people…” But somehow there are far fewer school shootings in other Western countries where guns are not as easily accessible and there isn’t a culture of gun ownership.
This aggravating. So sad. I feel horrible for the families. Baruch dayan ha’emes.
Terrible tragedy. Assault rifles should not be sold.
Now is the time to publicize A Moment of Silence
4 murdered students are Jewish r”l
3 had a connection to chabad houses
Moshiach!
How the heck did he get into the skool??
So glad to see Chabad is there. My non jewish freind called me crying wondering how to help the family. His son knew Sondra well and would walk with her to school. His son was trapped in the school for 90 mins waiting for the police. Needless to say he is totally distraught and messed up about the death of his Jewish friend. We need to pray for all involved. What a tragedy.
BD”E.
So sad for all the families. So sad for Jamie HY”D.
Tonight is Adar. Misheniknas Adar Marbim b’Simcha!!!!! This is NOT normal.
Please everyone – daven for the Geula, and do something to make it happen. Pick a mitzva and strengthen your observance of it. Say tehillim. Give Tzedakah.
Do Something!
Bring back that euphoric achdus we felt when SM Rubashkin was finally given a partial Geula, Let’s make it happen again, for all of us with n’eNow !
MZ