Casualties rushed to hospital after Florida university shooting | Florida

A shooting on Thursday on the Florida State University campus sent an unknown number of people to a nearby hospital, a medical center spokesperson said, amid unconfirmed reports of several fatalities.

Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare was receiving and treating people affected by the shooting, said Sarah Cannon, a hospital spokesperson. She said the hospital could not yet confirm the number of people in care, and said the details were still unfolding.

Ambulances, fire trucks and patrol vehicles from multiple law enforcement agencies raced toward the campus that sits just west of Florida’s state capital after the university issued a shooter alert at midday on Thursday, saying police were responding near the student union.

“Our prayers are with our FSU family and state law enforcement is actively responding,” the state governor, Ron DeSantis, wrote on X.

A local TV station also reported that two shooters had been involved, with more details and confirmation sought.

Hundreds of students streamed away from the direction of the student union. Students were glued to their phones, some visibly emotional, while others hugged each other. Dozens gathered near the music school waiting for news.

Ryan Cedergren, a 21-year-old communications student, said he and about 30 others hid in the bowling alley in the lower level of the student union after seeing students running from a nearby bar.

“In that moment, it was survival,” he said.

After about 15 minutes of hiding, university police escorted the students out of the union and he saw a person getting emergency treatment on the lawn, he said.

A junior student, Joshua Sirmans, 20, was in the university’s main library when he said alarms began going off warning of a shooter. Law enforcement officers escorted him and other students out of the library with their hands over their heads, he said.

The US attorney general, Pam Bondi, said in a social media post that the justice department was in touch with FBI agents on the scene. Students and faculty were instructed to seek shelter and await further instructions.

“Lock and stay away from all doors and windows and be prepared to take additional protective measures,” the alert said.

The Associated Press contributed reporting