Canada was in mourning Wednesday, Prime Minister Mark Carney said, after a lone shooter killed at least nine people, including seven at a school, and injured dozens more in a remote western town.
"What happened has left our nation in shock and all of us in mourning," an emotional Carney told parliament.
And earlier, addressing reporters, he said "the nation mourns" with the town of Tumbler Ridge in British Columbia after Tuesday's shooting. "Canada stands by you."
Flags will be lowered to half-staff for seven days following the tragedy, among the deadliest shootings in Canada's history. Messages of support have flooded in from world leaders.
Tumbler Ridge, a tight-knit community of about 2,400 residents, lies in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies near the provincial border with Alberta, hundreds of kilometers from any major city.
Mayor Darryl Krakowka told public broadcaster CBC "the community is grieving. It's a big tragedy, we're one big family here."
Media began to descend on the remote community, ringed by snow-capped mountains, on Wednesday as police searched for clues.
Emergency responders found six people shot dead Tuesday at Tumbler Ridge's secondary school, while a seventh person died in transit to hospital, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement.
Two others were killed at a nearby residence, while at least 25 people were wounded in the attack.
The suspect, described by police in an initial emergency alert as a "female in a dress with brown hair," was found dead at the school with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Police have not yet released identifying information about the shooter or victims, but CBC News reported the suspect's identity was known to authorities.
"We will get through this. We will learn from this. But right now, it's a time to come together, as Canadians always do," Carney said.
He called off a planned trip to the Munich Security Conference in Germany and will brief parliament at 2:00 pm (1900 GMT).
Britain's King Charles, the monarch of Canada, said in a statement that he and Queen Camilla were "profoundly shocked and saddened" to learn of the attack.
"In such a closely connected town, every child's name will be known and every family will be a neighbor," he said.
School shootings remain rare in Canada compared to the neighboring United States.
This tragedy ranks among the country's deadliest, following the 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting which claimed 22 lives and led to a ban on many assault weapons.
- 'Disturbing' -
Tumbler Ridge student Darian Quist told Canadian broadcaster CBC he was in his mechanics class when there was an announcement that the school was in lockdown.
He said initially he "didn't think anything was going on," but started receiving "disturbing" photos about the carnage.
"It set in what was happening," Quist said.
He stayed in lockdown for more than two hours until police stormed in, ordering everyone to put their hands up before escorting them out of the school.
Area schools will remain closed for the rest of the week.
Local journalist Trent Ernst, a former substitute teacher at Tumbler Ridge, expressed shock over the shooting at the school, where one of his children had just graduated.
He noted that school shootings have been a rarity occurring every few years in Canada compared with the United States.
"I used to kind of go: 'Look at Canada, look at who we are.' But then that one school shooting every 2.5 years happens," he told AFP.
Pastor George Rowe of Tumbler Ridge Fellowship Church told CBC that it was "very, very difficult to deal with."
"Everybody here, practically, they know everybody... I don't think it will be a big surprise when the name is released because you're in a small community," he said.
Ken Floyd, commander of the police's northern district, said Tuesday was "an incredibly difficult and emotional day" and that the investigation was ongoing.
Officers were searching homes and properties in the community to see if there were additional sites connected to the incident.
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