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2 teens shot outside West Side High School in Newark, N.J.
Two teenagers were shot outside West Side High School in Newark Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.
www.cbsnews.com
2 teens shot outside West Side High School in Newark, N.J.
By Dave Carlin , Ali Bauman , Jesse Zanger
Updated on: March 26, 2024 / 8:55 PM EDT / CBS New York
NEWARK, N.J. - Two teens, including a student, were shot outside West Side High School in Newark Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.
Newark Public Safety Director Frtiz Frage said police responded to the school at around 2:45 p.m., as students were beginning to be let out. Responding officers found a 17-year-old student and a 15-year-old who had been shot outside of the school.
The two teens were rushed to University Hospital for treatment. The 17-year-old is said to be in stable but critical condition, and the 15-year-old is in stable condition.
The third victim was also injured while trying to escape from the scene.
The circumstances surrounding the shooting weren't immediately known. Witnesses said a suspect left the scene in a sedan.
Some students still inside the school were kept in their classrooms for about 20 minutes after the shooting.
One witness described hearing about eight, rapid-fire shots.
The father of a student says his 14-year-old son called him frantically after running away from the gunshots.
"Actually present right where the shots were going off and in the vicinity of where the shots were being rung out, too, so he could have been hit," Michael Alvarado said. "In the group where this happened, he said it was about 40 or 50 students."
Video from the scene showed several emergency vehicles and police response outside the school. Chopper 2 spotted a handgun lying on the ground on the street.
More police were spotted about a block away, between South Orange and 14th Avenues.
Gov. Phil Murphy said he's been briefed on the shooting.
"Every student deserves to be safe at school," he wrote on social media.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka says the city will increase presence at the school.
Police have not made any arrests.