A teacher wounded in last week’s shooting at a Bend, Oregon, elementary school shared her account of the incident, and how she was shot before she could intervene and “[pretended] to be dead”.
Becky Drury was seriously wounded at Silver Rail elementary when Griffin J John II, a ۱۶-year-old former student at the school armed with a shotgun, broke in and headed toward a special education classroom. He shot six people, killing Megan Lambert, a ۲۵-year-old teacher, and three children, including five-year-old Rhoam Summer.
Drury and Saylor Graham, a seven-year-old student, were also shot. Another teacher threw her phone at John and tackled him before a parent fatally shot the teen gunman.
Drury, who is still hospitalized, released a statement on Wednesday.
“Here is what I remember: Once I realized something was happening outside, I ran to see what was going on. I then saw the shooter and immediately ran back into the classroom. I turned to shut the door behind me, but the shooter was already there. Before I could do anything more, he shot me at close range and I fell to the ground,” Drury said.
Her left hand was almost completely severed, and her other arm was also badly injured, Drury said.
“I could not get up, defend myself, or protect anyone else. So, I did the only thing I could do, which was to pretend to be dead in the hope he would not shoot me again,” she said. “I know there has been contradictory reporting about my actions that day, but the truth is I was shot before I had any chance to act.”
Drury’s account contradicted some reporting that she had thrown herself on top of a student in an effort to protect her, and the ۵۴-year-old said she wanted to ensure “the events of that day and my actions in particular are reported accurately”.
She described the violence as “unimaginable” and said “my heart is broken for everyone affected by this tragedy.”
Public schools in the central Oregon city began reopening this week. Dozens of officers have welcomed students as they return to their classes.
The shooting remains under investigation. The Bend police department said this week that the shotgun used in the incident was purchased legally.
