Two gunmen open fire in Montreal's Dawson College
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CanWest News Service
Published: Wednesday, September 13, 2006
MONTREAL — Two gunmen opened fire Wednesday inside downtown Montreal’s Dawson College leaving wounding 16 people and sending hundreds of screaming and terrified students and staff running into the streets and seeking cover.
The hospital authority reported 12 victims were admitted to hospital — six in critical condition, two serious and four in stable condition.
Reports said the two gunman were dead — one had been shot and one had taken his own life. Police spokesman Sgt. Ian Lafrenieree confirmed one gunman was "neutralized."
SWAT teams and police canine units are going through the buildings looking for victims, CNN reported.
"Most of the students have exited the college grounds," Sgt. Giuseppe Boccardi told the network.
Outside, a state of panic quickly emerged with frightened students giving wildly varying accounts of what was happening inside. There were several reports saying there was one gunman, while others said there were as many as four.
Television images showed police pulling a bloodied person out of the building, while ambulances gathered as medical workers rushed stretchers through the streets.
Helicopters are buzzing overhead and emergency vehicles continued to arrive an hour after the first reports of shots.
One student told a radio station she saw two people who had been shot, with one person hit in the neck.
The ambulance department confirmed three people have been transported to hospital in critical condition and there are several more wounded inside the facility, which has about 10,000 full-and part-time students.
Live television pictures showed students continuing to flee from all exits long after the first shots were reported. Some of the students ran away from the buildings holding their hands in the air.
Several people were seen being taken out on stretchers. On the front steps of the building, blood was seen on the ground near a police vehicle.
Witnesses said it appeared one gunman was chasing someone and at least 20 shots were fired.
Michel Boyer, 19, told CTV he saw a masked gunman wearing black from head to toe and wearing a mask was seen with a black rifle or shotgun. He said he heard 20 shots and ran for shelter in a classroom.
"I think I'm very lucky to be alive and that is wasn't injured," Boyer said.
"It was like something from a movie, it is the most scary thing that has ever happened to me."
Another report said a white gunman with a Mohawk haircut and dressed in black opened fire in the building.
The shootings began around 1:00 p.m. Eastern time and reportedly took place in the cafeteria, on the third floor of the school.
Alexandra Garcia was in class when she heard shots close by to the classroom.
"We were hearing shots repeatedly...we were all stressed," she told CBC Newsworld. Her and the other students barricaded themselves inside the classroom by putting a desk in front of the door and she hid under her desk until a police officer arrived to the room
"I was just hoping the shooter wasnÂ’t going to come in and shoot us."
Student Caroline Stephens, was in class at the time when someone burst into the classroom telling them to get out because there was a gunman in the school. The teacher did not take the warning seriously, said Stephens, because the teacher thought it was a joke at first. Upon hearing the ensuing commotion of people fleeing the building, Stephens and her classmates evacuated. She described seeing a student with a gunshot wound to the stomach outside the school being helped by bystanders.
The school is located in a densely populated area of the city with stores and offices surrounding it.
It is not the first time there has been a shooting in a Montreal college. In December 1989, Marc Lepine shot and killed 14 women and wounded several others at Ecole Polytechnique during a shooting rampage that ended when he took his own life.
In an interview on CBC Newsworld, Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe said he found out about the shootings shortly after 1 p.m.
"ItÂ’s tough to understand, that shouldnÂ’t happen in a civilized society," he said.
Duceppe said while the motive for the assault is unclear he expressed concern about the amount of gun violence on television and said perhaps it influences some people to commit violent acts. "We have to look at more than what happened (in Montreal), how come those things happen?" asked Duceppe.
Family Hotlines:
Information hotlines were set up by police for families to call for Dawson College shooting info.
(514) 280-2880; (514) 280-2806
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can somebody summarise pls? i jus wanna noe did 50 cent die.
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Originally posted by monoslayer:can somebody summarise pls? i jus wanna noe did 50 cent die.
no lah.
Chao mono..people die, show some respect lah
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my apologies. but ur post is too long.Originally posted by LazerLordz: no lah.
Chao mono..people die, show some respect lah 
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can read slowly mah.Originally posted by monoslayer:my apologies. but ur post is too long. 
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lazy lah.. tis kind of news so common in the states tat i cant b bothered liaoz.Originally posted by LazerLordz:can read slowly mah. 
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Im so glad we dont have guns allowed freely in sg...
Imagine all the bengs with firearms...
And all the shoot-outs...
Then security checks'd be worse.....
Then we'd have assasinations(not bad though:lol
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its NOT in the states!!!!Originally posted by monoslayer:lazy lah.. tis kind of news so common in the states tat i cant b bothered liaoz.
okok...im going to read the article... -
but in the states, people have guns to protect themselves...Originally posted by missqi:Im so glad we dont have guns allowed freely in sg...
Imagine all the bengs with firearms...
And all the shoot-outs...
Then security checks'd be worse.....
Then we'd have assasinations(not bad though:lol.....
its just TOO safe in singapore. -
Sigh....
It's a sad, sad world that we live in.
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ish udon in montreal?
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they cant protect themselves in school...Originally posted by udontknowme:but in the states, people have guns to protect themselves...
its just TOO safe in singapore.
if someone at the back of the class starts shooting indiscriminately.... -
nope.Originally posted by laurence82:ish udon in montreal?
im in one of the safest parts of north america -
Buying guns to protect yourself from other guns.Originally posted by udontknowme:but in the states, people have guns to protect themselves...
its just TOO safe in singapore.
Sounds like a pretty vicious cycle to me.
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Originally posted by udontknowme:nope.
im in one of the safest parts of north america 
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but these kinda things happen around the world.Originally posted by missqi:they cant protect themselves in school...
if someone at the back of the class starts shooting indiscriminately....
people go to school knowing that there is a posibility that that can happen.
this IS how it is in this world.
its not fair and it doesnt make sense.
but thats just the way it is. -
like whats fudgester said...Originally posted by udontknowme:but these kinda things happen around the world.
people go to school knowing that there is a posibility that that can happen.
this IS how it is in this world.
its not fair and it doesnt make sense.
but thats just the way it is.
I think firearm laws here are very good....
i would rather be homeschooled if i was in the states... -
if i gt gun.. i'll shoot those who make noise in class.. n those wif noisy motorbike..
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i still stick with singapore is TOO safeOriginally posted by missqi:like whats fudgester said...
I think firearm laws here are very good....
i would rather be homeschooled if i was in the states...
there are many people here who go out NOT realizing how they have to behave when they go oveseas.
and even if you were homeschooled, the risks are still the same.
shootouts occur everywhere. not just schools
and more often than not, random people get killed.
yes. the firearm laws in singapore are good.
but even if firearms are banned in this world, people STILL have a way of getting some.
and shooting would STILL occur. -
why is being too safe not good......Originally posted by udontknowme:i still stick with singapore is TOO safe
there are many people here who go out NOT realizing how they have to behave when they go oveseas.
and even if you were homeschooled, the risks are still the same.
shootouts occur everywhere. not just schools
and more often than not, random people get killed.
yes. the firearm laws in singapore are good.
but even if firearms are banned in this world, people STILL have a way of getting some.
and shooting would STILL occur. -
So you would choose to protect yourself from these guns by buying guns of your own?Originally posted by udontknowme:i still stick with singapore is TOO safe
there are many people here who go out NOT realizing how they have to behave when they go oveseas.
and even if you were homeschooled, the risks are still the same.
shootouts occur everywhere. not just schools
and more often than not, random people get killed.
yes. the firearm laws in singapore are good.
but even if firearms are banned in this world, people STILL have a way of getting some.
and shooting would STILL occur.
Like I said, it's a vicious cycle.
One side buys guns, the other side buys assault rifles.
One side buys Kevlar vests, the other side buys armour-piercing rounds.
In the end, everybody loses. -
because the world is NOT safe.Originally posted by missqi:why is being too safe not good......
and we get too used to being in such a safe environment.
we walk around and dont give two hoots about being kidnapped any moment. blah blah blah...
and when we live outside singapore, we carry the same mentality and then we get into trouble. -
isnt it good?Originally posted by udontknowme:because the world is NOT safe.
and we get too used to being in such a safe environment.
we walk around and dont give two hoots about being kidnapped any moment. blah blah blah...
and when we live outside singapore, we carry the same mentality and then we get into trouble.
should we live in fear all the time?
should we wrry whether our neighbor will come over and shoot all of us?
should we? -
people who grow up and live in different envoronments think and act different.
and there are pros and cons for everything.