Gunman Wounds Staff Member, Dies by Suicide Inside Virginia Elementary School

Police identify gunman and describe forced entry

WAYNESBORO, Va. — A 19-year-old gunman forced his way into Westwood Hills Elementary School Wednesday morning, shot and wounded a staff member, then died by suicide in the school library, according to the account Waynesboro Police Chief David Shaw gave at an afternoon news conference.

Police identified the gunman as Anthony Ignatiadis-Isabelle of Waynesboro. Shaw said officers received a report of a suspicious person on school grounds at approximately 9:12 a.m. Eastern time and located Ignatiadis-Isabelle dead inside the library within about three minutes of the initial call.

No students were in the library, and authorities reported no injuries to any child. The wounded employee suffered an injury described as not life-threatening, was treated and has been released from the hospital.

Read the source: Associated Press: Police identify gunman and release the shooting timeline ↗

What investigators have—and have not—established

The police briefing resolves the most important uncertainty in the initial report: there was no fugitive and no arrest. Officers found the gunman dead from what police described as an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after he entered the campus and wounded the employee.

Investigators have not announced a motive, said whether Ignatiadis-Isabelle knew the victim or disclosed whether he had any connection to Westwood Hills Elementary. They also have not publicly identified the wounded employee or described the firearm used.

The confirmed identity and timeline do not support speculation about ideology, mental health, a personal grievance or a targeted relationship. Those questions remain part of an active investigation.

Read the source: Waynesboro Public Schools: Official update confirming students, teachers and staff are safe ↗

School evacuated and families reunited

Students, teachers and staff were evacuated from the school at 548 Rosser Avenue while law enforcement conducted a thorough clearance. Families were directed to Westminster Presbyterian Church on Mount Vernon Street for reunification rather than to the school campus.

Waynesboro Public Schools reported at 11:54 a.m. Eastern that everyone from Westwood was accounted for and safe. By approximately 12:30 p.m., the division said all Westwood students had been released to parents or guardians.

The successful evacuation does not erase the fear created by gunfire at an elementary school. It does establish an essential confirmed fact: officials have reported no injured children, no missing students and no continuing active threat.

Read the source: Virginia State Police: Official safety update from local partners ↗

Precautionary lockdowns were lifted

All other Waynesboro public schools were placed on lockdown as a precaution while the emergency unfolded. The school division lifted those lockdowns at approximately 12:30 p.m. Eastern and said parents who wished to collect their children could access the schools while following staff and police instructions.

Nearby Augusta County schools in the Wilson and Stuarts Draft areas were placed in a precautionary secure status, which kept people outside while instruction continued. That restriction was lifted at 11:05 a.m. after the sheriff's office determined those campuses could return to normal activities.

The county school division said the Waynesboro incident was not directly connected to its schools. There is no confirmed report of a second shooting or coordinated threat at another campus.

Read the source: WHSV: School evacuation, reunification and lockdown timeline ↗

Westwood closed Thursday; other schools to open

Superintendent Jeffrey Cassell said the district's security procedures worked: employees notified police immediately, the campus locked down and every student and staff member returned home safely. He credited school employees and the local, state and federal agencies that responded.

Westwood Hills Elementary will be closed Thursday, September 3. The district said its other schools will open with an additional police presence, and support resources will be available to students, employees and families dealing with the aftermath.

Confirmed: the gunman forced entry, wounded a staff member and died by suicide in the library; the employee has been released; no children were injured; and officers reached the gunman within approximately three minutes. Still unknown: motive, the gunman's connection to the school or victim, the victim's identity and the weapon used.

Read the source: WJLA: Incident contained and school secured ↗

About the image

The lead image is an authentic 2019 file photograph looking down West Main Street in downtown Waynesboro. Photographer Duffyss1 released it under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license.

The photograph establishes the community where the emergency occurred. It does not show Westwood Hills Elementary School, the shooting, the evacuation or Wednesday's law-enforcement response.

Read the source: Cville Right Now: Police briefing, school closure and added security ↗