A quiet town of 2,400 people in British Columbia is trying to make sense of something that shouldn’t happen anywhere, let alone in a place where everyone knows everyone. Eight people are dead after 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar went on a shooting rampage that started at a family home and ended at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School.
The violence began with the suspect’s own family. Police found Van Rootselaar’s 39-year-old mother and 11-year-old step-brother dead at their home before the shooter headed to the local secondary school. By the time it was over, six more people were dead at the school: a 39-year-old teacher, three 12-year-old girls, and two boys aged 12 and 13.
A Community That Knows Every Name
Mayor Darryl Krakowka told reporters something that hit hard: “I will know every victim.” That’s what happens when you’ve lived in a small town for 19 years. The victims aren’t statistics. They’re your neighbor’s kids, the teacher who helped at the community fundraiser, the students who played on the local hockey team.
Twenty-five others were injured in the attack. Two of them were airlifted to hospital and are still fighting for their lives. The school has just 160 students total, covering grades 7 through 12. Do the math on that. Nearly every family in Tumbler Ridge has been touched by this in some way.
The Warning Signs Were There
Police had been to Van Rootselaar’s family home multiple times over the years. Some of those calls were specifically about mental health concerns. The suspect had dropped out of Tumbler Ridge Secondary School four years ago and previously held a gun license that had since lapsed.
RCMP Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald confirmed that Van Rootselaar was born male but had begun transitioning to female about six years ago. Police found two firearms at the scene, a long gun and a modified handgun, though they’re still working out exactly how each weapon was used in the shootings.
The response time was incredibly fast. Officers arrived within two minutes of the 1:30 PM call about an active shooter. They heard gunfire as they entered and found the suspect dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound within minutes.
Canada’s Gun Debate Heats Up Again
This tragedy is going to reignite debates about whether Canada’s gun laws need to be even stricter. The country already has significantly tougher regulations than its southern neighbor, but events like this always prompt questions about whether enough is being done.
Prime Minister Mark Carney called it “unheard of cruelty” and noted that students and teachers witnessed something no one should ever have to see. Some victims are still in hospital “fighting for their lives,” he said in a statement that acknowledged the ongoing nature of this community’s trauma.
The question everyone’s asking is the same one that comes up after every mass shooting: could this have been prevented? Van Rootselaar had mental health issues known to police, a lapsed gun license, and a history that included dropping out of the very school that became a crime scene. At what point does a collection of red flags become an intervention?
