6 victims and at least 2 shooters in Wednesday’s Oakland school shooting

Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong said Thursday that at least two shooters fired 30 or more rounds on the King Estates school campus in East Oakland Wednesday afternoon, wounding six adults, two of whom are students. 

Armstrong added that police know a driver was involved and possibly others. Police have made no arrests but believe the shooting was gang-related. Armstrong said police also think the shooters had a target and that those who were shot were not targeted.

Oakland city and school officials provided the update during a virtual news conference Thursday morning, a day after the shooting traumatized students on the sprawling campus and  horrified the community. 

“That is wholly unacceptable,” Armstrong said. “We thank God that many more students were not injured as a result of this action.”

As of 11 a.m., three victims were still in the hospital —  two in serious condition and one in stable condition – and the three others were released, Armstrong said.

At 12:45 p.m. Wednesday, the Police Department’s communication division started to receive calls regarding a shooting on the King Estates campus in the 8200 block of Fontaine Street. The campus hosts Rudsdale Continuation High School, Rudsdale Newcomer High School, BayTech Charter School, and the headquarters of Sojourner Truth Independent Study. Armstrong said the shooting occurred at Rudsdale and video footage shows that the suspects came in through the front entrance and began firing. 

Armstrong said two of the victims attend school on the campus, one is a counselor, one is a security guard, and two work at the school. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that the two workers are district carpenters. 

School on the King Estates campus was canceled Thursday, said John Sasaki, spokesperson for the Oakland Unified School District. He added that the campus will remain closed for repairs. 

Damage was caused both by gunshots and by police breaching classrooms when they were searching the school. 

Sasaki said earlier that counselors were made available to help students deal with the trauma. 

“Can you imagine the kind of recover you have to have to just get in and study and learn in school when you have to deal with this kind of trauma,” he said.

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf called on Congress to pass legislation that will address gun violence. 

“While we wait for that action to happen, we will do what we do best here in Oakland, California, and that is wrap our arms around our communities that have been traumatized by yet another incident of senseless gun violence,” Schaaf said. “We will provide healing and support and continue to work to change the conditions both at the community level and the individual level to ensure that people do not resort to violence.”