Shooting Near Chaparral High School
By Hannah Dunbar
Several teens were injured near Chaparral High School in East Las Vegas in the afternoon on Monday, January 31. Around 11:00 a.m, authorities received a report of a fire on the campus and the school was evacuated. After the students and staff were escorted back inside, police then received several reports of gun shootings at 11:43 a.m.
The Clark County Fire Department did respond to the fire and they found a paper towel that was smoking in the women’s bathroom. The fire officials said that there was no sign of threats or arson to the campus and the fire is unrelated to the shooting.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Captain Kristine Buist spoke on the situation at hand. She stated that the shooting was near the proximity of the high school and it did not occur on school property. The scene was clear when the police arrived.
“While units were on scene, they began receiving calls from a local hospital that they were victims that were being dropped off with gunshot wounds,” said Captain Buist. It was discovered that there were three victims and that they are currently being treated at Sunrise Hospital. Two of the victims so far were confirmed to be students at the school. There is no information regarding the third victim besides the fact that all three victims are male. Fortunately, it seems their injuries don’t appear to be life-threatening.
Chaparral High School principal, Thomas Smith sent out a notification to parents that the school would be on lockdown due to police activity. Principal Smith also stated: “We take the personal safety of each and every student seriously”. The lockdown lasted from 11:45 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. The LVMPD confirmed that there were several teenage juveniles shooting at each other.
A custodian at the school, who wished to remain anonymous, gave some insight on what happened. She was heading into work around 1:41 p.m. when she saw a bunch of parents lined up to pick up their children. She stated that nobody was allowed in the gym at all.
Her manager informed her that the IEP students were on their lunch break when the fire started then the kids were removed for the drill. When they just got back inside, the shooting started in the north parking lot into the neighborhood.
Another email was sent by the principal to inform him if any other students got injured. The worker also made some comments about how she felt about the situation.
“It’s quite sad. You hear all about gun violence all over America, but it hits you harder when it’s in your neighborhood,” said the anonymous custodian.
The shooting frightened parents who were unable to pick up their children until the lockdown was released.
The Clark County School District Police Sergeant Byran Zink stated that the gunfire occurred between two vehicles off-campus near Chaparral High School. Right now, the LVMPD is still investigating what exactly happened. There hasn’t been any further updates as of yet.
