Updated December 16, 2024 at 15:07 PM ET
A shooter opened fire at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., leaving at least three people dead and six more injured, police said Monday.
The death toll was lowered from an earlier police report of four victims.
The alleged shooter was among those found dead after the shooting, which began sometime before 11 a.m. at the school, which houses students from kindergarten through high school.
(NPR member station Wisconsin Public Radio is tracking local updates here.)
Police Chief Shon Barnes says the suspect, a student at the school, was found dead — believed to be by a self-inflicted gunshot. Police said the alleged shooter was found dead by officers inside the school. Barnes said police did not fire their weapons.
"It's a sad day for our community and our country. We have to do a little bit better," Barnes said.
Officials said they would not yet disclose identifying information about the victims — ages, genders and whether they were students, faculty or parents — until all families had been notified.
The Madison Police Department is scheduled to deliver another update at 2:30 p.m. local time.
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers said he is "closely monitoring the incident."
In a post on X, he continued, "We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond."
Before Monday's shooting, there had been at least 81 school shootings in the United States in 2024, according to a CNN analysis.
According to the school's website, Abundant Life Christian School focuses on providing a "quality Christian education" to the some 200 families represented in the student body.
In a post on its public Facebook page, the school requested prayers in the wake of the violence.
"Today, we had an active shooter incident at ALCS. We are in the midst of following up. We will share information as we are able."
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