LONDON, March 13 -- A gunman armed with four pistols went on a shooting rampage at a primary school in central Scotland Wednesday, killing 16 children and a teacher at play in a gymnasium and wounding 15 others before he apparently turned the gun on himself. The lone gunman opened fire about 9:30 a.m. in the gymnasium at Dunblane Primary School in Dunblane, a small cathedral town located 40 miles (65 km) northwest of Edinburgh. In addition to those killed, 12 children and three adults were wounded in the attack. Police said a school teacher and 29 children between the ages of four and six were at play in an exercise class when the man, identified as Thomas Hamilton, 43, entered carrying four handguns and began shooting. Teachers in nearby classrooms heard the gunfire and ordered their students to get under their desks. Authorities estimated the shooting spree lasted no more than two or three minutes. 'The incident happened in a gymnasium with a schoolteacher and a class of pupils,' said Chief Constable William Willson, 'and unfortunately, the schoolteacher's dead and the 5-year-old kids, there's not many of them left.' He said he wasn't certain what brought the shooting spree to an end. 'I couldn't tell you what stopped him shooting,' Willson said. 'That's still being investigated. Whether he ran out of bullets I couldn't tell you.' Hamilton's motive was not immediately known. John Fogg of the Scout Association told BBC News Hamilton used to be a scout master between 1973 and 1974, but was asked to resign after a complaint was lodged against him.
Hamilton made several attempts to re-join the Scout Association but he was turned down, Fogg said. Hamilton also was described as a loner and a gun enthusiast who belonged to a local gun club. The shootings stunned Britain, with Prime Minister John Major describing it as a 'mad and evil act,' and Queen Elizabeth II issuing a statement saying she was 'deeply shocked by the appalling news.' Members of Parliament expressed their horror in the House of Commons. A dozen ambulances were dispatched to the school following the shootings, and a medical helicopter and air ambulances from across the region were also sent to the site. A hospital spokeswoman said one child died on arrival in hospital. 'There are 16 children dead and two adults. Fifteen died at the school and one died either on the way to hospital or on arrival,' said Jim Watson, a spokesman for the Central Regional Authority in Scotland. Police later confirmed the death toll. Fourteen wounded children and two adults were taken to the hospital, including one child who died later. 'Around 10:30, following the incident, a team went to the scene and began to treat casualties. They went to the school and after stabilizing the casualties brought them back,' said Janice Gardiner, spokeswoman for the Stirling Royal Infirmary. 'Because of the nature of one child's injuries, he was transferred by helicopter to...Glasgow. Those remaining are being treated, are undergoing emergency care,' she said. Richard Morgan, of the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow, said doctors were treating one boy for gunshot wounds to the chest. He said the boy had been flown from Stirling Royal Infirmary to Glasgow by helicopter. His parents were at the hospital, 'completely distraught,' Morgan said. Morgan said the hospital was expecting a second boy by road ambulance. The youngster had been shot in the leg and had a broken femur, but the wound was not expected to be life-threatening, Morgan said. The Glasgow hospital sent a surgeon, nurse and anesthetist to Stirling Royal Infirmary to help doctors there treat the casualties. The immediate area around the school was cordoned off after the shooting but dozens of parents gathered around, obviously in shock. News reports spoke of neighbors opening their doors to comfort grieving parents. Leslie Dunn, 56, who has one girl, 16, one boy, 14, at Dunblane High School expressed his shock at the shooting. 'I am absolutely devastated,' he told United Press International in a telephone interview. 'I am bound to know someone who has children at the primary school. Nothing surprises you nowadays, but you wouldn't expect it to happen in a quiet place like this. It's an absolute shock.' The mass killing was one of the worst on record in Britain. The most recent such incident occurred in 1987, when 27-year-old gunman Michael Ryan opened fire with an assault rifle and a pistol in the town of Hungerford in southern England, killing 16 people and wounding 14 others before taking his own life.
