She Threw Her Phone, Then She Threw Herself

There are moments when courage arrives not in a grand gesture but in the smallest, most improvised of acts—a cellphone hurled across a classroom, a body thrown against a body, a decision made in the space between one breath and the next. On Thursday afternoon at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, that is what happened.

A 16-year-old shooter entered the school through locked doors, firing at least 15 shots from a pump-action shotgun in a special education classroom. Three children—aged 5, 8, and 11—and a teacher were killed. Two others, a 7-year-old child and a 54-year-old teacher, were wounded and taken to a hospital in critical condition.

What police say happened next has been described by authorities as heroic. A teacher in the classroom threw her cellphone at the shooter and then tackled him, wrestling with him to try to stop the attack. Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz said the teacher’s actions “almost certainly helped prevent more bloodshed”. She was not injured.

The shooter was later shot and killed by a community member, identified as Kaylub Giamanco, who entered the school with a 40-caliber pistol and confronted the attacker as the teacher struggled with him. Police said the suspect was found dead inside the school minutes after the first 911 call was made shortly before 1 p.m..

Oregon Governor Tina Kotek praised the community member who intervened. “Your actions carry a heavy emotional burden, and I just want you to know that my thoughts are with you as well,” she said.

The shooter used a shotgun purchased by his mother, according to a law enforcement official. Under Oregon law, a minor may possess a shotgun if provided by a parent or with parental consent. Police said they did not know whether the shooter knew anyone at the school or had attended it.

Silver Rail Elementary serves students in kindergarten through fifth grade, with about 450 enrolled last year. Classes and activities were canceled Friday for all 32 schools in the Bend-La Pine district. At a vigil Thursday night, children drew hearts in chalk on the sidewalk and held candles beside adults. Flowers were laid against the school’s sign.

The shooting was the 28th mass killing in the United States this year, according to a database maintained by the Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University.

AI Image Disclaimer: The accompanying visual is AI-generated and does not depict the actual school, victims, or individuals involved.

Sources: Associated Press, BBC News, CNN, New York Post, Bernama, Xinhua, Toronto Star