Four people were fatally shot and several others injured at a Georgia high school Wednesday morning, sending shock waves through the leafy Atlanta suburb of Winder, Georgia, and schools throughout the county into lockdown.

Nine people - eight students and one teacher - were taken to hospitals with injuries, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Two students and two teachers were killed, GBI Director Chris Hosey said at a news briefing Wednesday afternoon.

Suspected shooter Colt Gray, a 14-year-old student, was arrested and charged with murder Wednesday, according to the GBI. Authorities said he would be prosecuted as an adult.  

Reports about an active shooter at Apalachee High School started coming in around 10:20 am, Hosey said, and law enforcement arrived minutes later. Once they encountered the shooter, he immediately surrendered and was taken into custody, according to Hosey. Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith told reporters he was not aware of any connection between the suspected shooter and the victims.

"This is a very, very fluid investigation," Smith said in a news conference outside the school. "What you see behind us is an evil thing."

President Joe Biden said he and first lady Jill Biden were mourning those killed in the shooting. He demanded that Congress move to pass gun control legislation.

"What should have been a joyous back-to-school season in Winder, Georgia, has now turned into another horrific reminder of how gun violence continues to tear our communities apart," Biden said. "Students across the country are learning how to duck and cover instead of how to read and write. We cannot continue to accept this as normal." According to a database by USA TODAY, the Associated Press and Northeastern University, Wednesday's massacre is the 604th mass killing in the US since 2006 in which four or more people are killed. The database has tracked 3,120 fatalities in mass killings across the United States in 18 years.  

A USA TODAY analysis of the data found Gray is the youngest suspected school shooter behind a mass killing since at least 2006.

The massacre in Georgia is the first school mass killing this fall after the 2023-24 school year saw a dramatic rise in shootings with at least 144 instances of gun violence, according to a recent study. Everytown for Gun Safety and David Riedman, founder of the K-12 School Shooting Database, found gun violence at schools killed 36 people and injured 87 others in the previous academic year.  

Schools across county closed for rest of week

All schools throughout Barrow County went into lockdown as a "precautionary measure," the sheriff's office said Wednesday morning around 11:30 am ET.

Barrow County School System Superintendent Dallas LeDuff said later Wednesday afternoon the schools will be closed for the rest of the week, and crisis counseling will be available. According to the Athens Banner-Herald, part of the USA TODAY Network, the school sent a message to parents at 10:45 am local time stating, “Apalachee High School is currently in a hard lockdown after reports of gunfire. Law enforcement is here. Please do not attempt to come to the school at this time while officers work to secure the area. " 

Multiple injuries, helicopter evacuation, ambulances seen

Though officials did not detail the severity of injuries, Fox-5 TV in Atlanta reported observing a person being loaded into a helicopter for transport to a hospital. News outlets also reported seeing others being loaded into ambulances.  

Aerial footage streamed by local news outlet WJCL showed people assembled at the school's athletic field and in the bleachers with a large police and first responder presence.

Grady Hospital in Atlanta told USA TODAY that it "received one gunshot wound victim from Apalachee High School in Barrow County."

17-year-old Apalachee High senior heard gunshots and screams

One of the students who was inside the school during the shooting was 17-year-old senior Sergio Caldera. He told ABC News he was in chemistry class when he heard gunshots.

"My teacher goes and opens the door to see what's going on. Another teacher comes running in and tells her to close the door because there's an active shooter," Caldera told ABC News.

He said his teacher locked the door and students then ran to the back of the room, he said they heard screams from outside as they "huddled up."

Caldera said someone pounded on his classroom door and shouted, "Open up!" multiple times at some point during the shooting. After the shouting and knocking stopped, he said he heard more gunshots and screams.

His class was later evacuated to the football field outside of the school.

Mass killing database: Mass killing database: Revealing trends, details and anguish of every US event since 2006

Parents taking children home from Apalachee High School

By midday, parents were allowed to take their children from the school. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation and FBI Atlanta reported having agents on site coordinating with local law enforcement.

All other schools in the district remain in a "soft lockdown," Barrow County School District told USA TODAY.

"The Barrow County Sheriff's Office says this is for the safety of everyone right now. We ask that parents do not visit your child's school at this time," the district said. "We cannot release students during a lockdown."

Apalachee was the only school cleared for parent reunification, the district said.

"Our agents are on scene coordinating with and supporting local law enforcement," the FBI in Atlanta said in a statement on its Facebook page.

The school is one of two high schools in the Barrow County school system. It has about 1,900 students in a rural town of 18,300 people. Winder is about 30 miles from Athens, Georgia.

Officials share prayers for school shooting victims, families

Georgia state officials say they are closely monitoring the situation and have directed local and state resources to the response.

"I have directed all available state resources to respond to the incident at Apalachee High School and urge all Georgians to join my family in praying for the safety of those in our classrooms, both in Barrow County and across the state," Gov. Brian Kemp said. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have been briefed on the shooting, according to the White House, and the administration "will continue coordinating with federal, state, and local officials as we receive more information." US Attorney General Merrick Garland said the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were at the scene and gathering information about the shooting. "I'm devastated for the families who have been affected by this terrible tragedy," Garland said.

US Rep. Mike Collins, who represents Barrow County, said he had spoken with the county sheriff and offered his assistance.

"Leigh Ann and I are praying for the victims, their families, and all students at Apalachee High School in Barrow County," he said. "We extend our gratitude to law enforcement for their swift action to secure the school and get the shooter in custody."

Former President Donald Trump wrote in a Truth Social post late Wednesday afternoon that "our hearts are with the victims and loved ones" affected by the shooting.  "These cherished children were taken from us far too soon by a sick and deranged monster," Trump wrote. Timeline: How Georgia's Apalachee HighSchool shooting unfolded

Kamala Harris at rally: This is another 'senseless tragedy'

Harris said during a campaign rally in New Hampshire that it was "outrageous" that parents have to worry about whether their children will come home alive.

"We're still gathering information about what happened. But we know that there were multiple fatalities and injuries," Harris said. "Our hearts are with all the students, the teachers and the families, of course. And we are grateful to the first responders and law enforcement that were on the scene. But this is just a senseless tragedy on top of so many senseless tragedies. "

Harris said it "doesn't have to be this way" and it needs to stop. "We have to end this epidemic of gun violence in our country once and for all," she said.

'American nightmare played out once again'

Groups advocating for stricter gun laws say they've become "hoarse" calling for change.

"The American nightmare played out once again," said March for Our Lives, the student activist organization that formed following the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida. "Our leaders have failed Apalachee High School today."  

In their statement, the group called out Kemp who said he would direct state resources to the school and has been endorsed by the National Rifle Association: "It's not enough to just react to a shooting, we must focus on prevention."  

Natalie Fall, the organization's executive director, drew a contrast between hallmark associations of what going back to school is like to what it feels like today.

"Back to school should mean new beginnings," Fall said, "a time for fresh notebooks, new friendships, and the excitement of learning. But in America today, it often means returning to fear." Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was the victim of an assassination attempt in 2011 that left six dead and founded her namesake gun violence prevention organization following the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut, called the shooting a "preventable tragedy."“Students deserve to feel safe at school. They deserve to live without fear of gun violence. Sadly, that is not the case in the United States, "Giffords said in a statement, adding that gun violence is the number one killer of children.Law experts at Giffords' organization grade states based on their gun safety laws and gave Georgia an F on its annual scorecard.Ways to improve gun safety, according to Giffords' experts, include repealing a permitless carry law and enacting a strong story.