CNN

A shooting at Denver-area high school leaves community shaken during third week of school

By CNN

Published September 11, 2025 5:00 am

CNN, POOL, KUSA, KMGH, KCNC, SEE PREFONTS

By Emma Tucker, CNN

(CNN) — Students at Evergreen High School in Colorado were more than halfway through the school day in their third week of classes this semester when over 100 law enforcement officers swarmed the campus, searching every room for an active shooter as they went into lockdown.

For most, their day ended waiting at a nearby reunification center for their loved ones as the high school tucked away in the mountains of Evergreen, Colorado, became a series of crime scenes after a shooting left at least two students with gunshot wounds.

The suspect — a male student at the school — was also taken to the hospital with a self-inflicted gunshot wound and later died, officials said.

Authorities rushed to the scene within two minutes of the first 911 call reporting gunfire and were in contact with the shooter – who used a handgun – within five minutes, as more than 900 students remained on lockdown while officers cleared each room, police said.

Authorities are working to obtain a search warrant for the suspect’s home, said Jacki Kelley, public information officer for the sheriff’s department.

Investigators are also working to interview many of the students who witnessed what happened to piece together how the school became the site of the 47th shooting that took place at a school in the United States so far this year – 24 of which were on college campuses and 23 on K-12 school grounds.

The tragedy took place less than an hour after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot at an event at Utah Valley University.

Colorado is a state known for several devastating shootings since the 1999 massacre at Columbine High School – from Aurora, where 12 people were killed at a movie theater in 2012, to an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs where five were fatally shot and the mass shooting at King Soopers in Boulder, which killed 10.

Gun violence touches family for the second time

One student remains in critical condition at nearby St. Anthony’s Hospital and the other injured student’s condition was stable, said Lindsay Radford, a spokesperson for the hospital. Officials do not believe there are any additional people injured, hospital CEO Kevin Cullinan said at a news briefing.

The grandfather of two twin brothers attending 10th grade at the school said he was in shock after learning his family was touched by gun violence for the second time within five years.

Mike Webb, whose ex-wife Xiaojie Tan was one of eight people killed in the 2021 Atlanta-area spa shootings, said the boys’ father texted him that an active shooter was at the school, but the brothers were safe.

“One of the boys was in the main hallway when the shooting broke out and he just ran,” Webb said. “The other boy was outside of the music room, and he ran too, but he ran into police who had weapons drawn.”

‘We always say not again, and here we are’

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the FBI are assisting with processing crime scenes both inside and outside of the school, which is located roughly 28 miles southwest from Denver.

“This is the scariest thing you could ever think that could happen and these parents were really frightened and so were the kids,” said Kelley. “And I know we always say not again, and here we are.”

Colorado Governor Jared Polis said state troopers were also responding to the scene. His administration is offering to help in the days ahead “to get children and families the resources needed to cope with this terrible act of violence,” Polis added.

“This kind of violence has absolutely no place in Colorado or anywhere, especially our schools, where kids should feel safe to learn and grow,” Polis said. “No family should ever fear for their child’s life as they send them to school.”

Senator Michael Bennet said he was “horrified” by the shooting and thanked law enforcement officers for their “swift response.”

“I will continue to monitor the situation closely and think of Evergreen’s teachers and students in the wake of this senseless violence,” he said.

The news of an active shooter at the school was Webb’s greatest fear realized, he said. He worries every day about his grandsons’ school being the next target of a shooting, but felt reassured by its tight-knit community.

“I thought, at least they’re up in the mountains and it’s unlikely anything like this would happen. And sure enough it did,” he said.

Webb said he spoke with one of the brothers, who was clearly shaken up, and told him he understands what they will be dealing with in the aftermath of the shooting.

“I told him none of us should have to go through this,” said Webb. “I said this is the world we live in and thank God you guys are OK.”