AILSA CHANG, HOST:
We begin this hour with the latest news out of Uvalde, Texas. If you have children around, please know the details of this story may not be appropriate for them to hear.
This afternoon, a gunman entered Robb Elementary School in Uvalde and opened fire. According to Governor Greg Abbott and local law enforcement, 14 children are dead and one teacher. Robb Elementary is a school for students in the second, third and fourth grades.
Rebecca Salinas from KSAT TV in San Antonio joins us now with more. Thank you so much for being with us.
REBECCA SALINAS: Hi, Ailsa. Thank you for having me.
CHANG: Hi. So we are not reporting the name of the gunman at this time, but what is known about exactly how today unfolded?
SALINAS: So when shots rang out, we really didn't know exactly what was happening because we're located in San Antonio, it's about - it's east of Uvalde, so we're, like, 80, 90 minutes away. We didn't really have people on the ground at that time, but we found out around noon that shots rang out at Robb Elementary. At around 12:17, that's when the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District - that's when they confirmed that there was an actual shooter taking place. You know, we had reporters heading down there and, later on, that's when we found out by Texas Governor Greg Abbott that, in fact, sadly, 14 students were killed and one teacher was killed as well.
CHANG: Right, and a number are injured. I imagine the local hospitals are treating students and staff who are injured. What do we know about their condition at this moment?
SALINAS: We know that 13 children were taken via ambulance or bus. They were taken to the Uvalde Memorial Hospital. From there, another two were taken to University Hospital in San Antonio, and they are in critical condition. Another two were also brought to San Antonio. And even that - we're a few hours after the shooting. Things are still developing. We don't really know what grade these students were in, if they're in critical condition, if they're expected to be OK. And, along with the rest of the state right now, we're still trying to figure out what condition these students and maybe teachers are in.
CHANG: Yeah.
SALINAS: And the authorities are expected to give press conferences throughout the evening to give us updates on that.
CHANG: OK. Well, have you or have any of your colleagues been able to speak with residents in Uvalde - community members, parents of students who attend the school?
SALINAS: Yes. So one of our colleagues, Leigh - she was actually at the center where they were reuniting students with their parents. And once - she was there when they - when Greg Abbott announced that 14 students were killed, and she noticed that there was just a wave of sorrow outside the civic center. Some of the parents were going to the civic center expecting to be reunited with their child, and then that's when they were given the devastating news that their child actually died in the horrific shooting.
CHANG: Well, we know that President Biden will be addressing the nation about what happened in Uvalde, Texas, tonight - in the next hour, I understand. We will be updating this story all night long here on ALL THINGS CONSIDERED, and also on Special Coverage.
Rebecca Salinas from KSAT TV in San Antonio, thank you very much for joining our show today.
SALINAS: Thank you for having me. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
