04 February 2025 , 13:51
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A school in Sweden has been locked down after reports of shooting with an automatic weapon.
Swedish police confirmed their operation is not ‘over’ amid the threat of a lethal attack at Risbergska School in the city of Örebro, 125 miles west of Stockholm.
Five people have been shot, but the extent of their injuries is not yet known.
Swedish media outlet Aftonbladet said a local hospital is being prepared for an influx of patients, with the emergency room and intensive care unit currently being emptied for victims.
Police said: ‘Five persons are confirmed shot. This is currently seen as attempted murder, arson and aggravated weapons offence.’
It added minutes later: ‘The danger is not over. The public MUST continue to stay away from Västhaga.’
The Swedish news agency TT reported, without providing its sources, that the perpetrator died by suicide.
It was not immediately clear whether police were counting the perpetrator among the five shot.
Contrary to what was reported earlier, no police officers were wounded in the operation.
An evacuation of the school buildings has now started. Students had been sheltering in nearby buildings. Other parts of the school were evacuated following the violence.
It was just 30 minutes ago that authorities announced they are responding to ‘threats of deadly violence’.
An updated later said: ‘An information point will be set up where relatives and others who have questions can gather.
‘People are again urged not to go to school or hospital. We will return to where the point will be located.’
Residents of the Västhaga area where Risbergska School is located have also been ordered to shelter inside and not leave their homes.
Multiple police units and ambulances are already at the school, but more have been deployed since, suggesting a large-scale operation.
‘The reports of violence in Orebro are very serious,’ justice minister Gunnar Strömmer told Swedish news agency TT.
‘The police are on site and the operation is in full swing. The government is in close contact with the police, and is closely following developments.’
Daniel Helldén, spokesperson for the Green Party, said his thoughts go out to the students, staff and their relatives.
He wrote on X: ‘It’s terrible what we’re getting from Örebro. My thoughts go out to everyone affected: students, staff, relatives.
‘It is unacceptable that this is happening and that the violence is spreading more and more.’