Bend father who stopped Oregon elementary school shooter recounts the attack

A Bend, Oregon, carpenter who shot and killed a teenage gunman at Silver Rail Elementary School has given his first detailed public account of the attack, which left three students and a teacher dead.

Kaylub Giamanco, 36, spoke with Oregon Public Broadcasting about the shooting a week after it happened, PBS NewsHour reported. A KPTV report distributed by Gray News and carried by Alaska's News Source, Hawaii News Now and KWCH 12 said the children killed were 5, 8 and 11 years old. That report said another student was critically injured and a teacher was hurt and hospitalized.

According to the KPTV report, the 16-year-old gunman was a former student of the school. Police said he used a shotgun to force his way through locked doors and went into a special-needs classroom.

Giamanco, whose two daughters attend the school, told OPB he was driving home for lunch when he spotted the gunman, PBS reported. The outlets describe that moment somewhat differently: PBS quoted him as saying he saw the shooter carrying a shotgun, while KPTV reported he described seeing the gunman toss a rifle over a fence.

Giamanco said he asked his phone to dial 911, but grew frustrated as the dispatcher asked routine questions, according to PBS. He recalled telling her, "I'm sorry. I have to go in. People are going to die."

KPTV reported that he took his gun from his truck's center console, heard gunfire and children calling for help, crawled low past a recycling bin and squeezed through a broken window into a small entryway beside the classroom. After confirming his weapon was loaded, he looked through a window and saw a teacher grappling with the armed teen, both turned sideways to him.

He said he opened the door, stepped in and fired, PBS reported. The teacher ran from the room, apparently believing he was a second attacker, and he then shot the gunman twice more when he saw him reaching for his weapon.

Police have said Giamanco was legally carrying the gun in his truck and have credited both him and the unarmed teacher with saving lives, according to KPTV.

Giamanco told OPB the teacher's struggle gave him a clear shot, and said he did not know her name but wanted to thank her, PBS reported. He said he called his mother afterward, KPTV reported, and she told him he had done the right thing.

He also described heavy chest pain and grief over the children who died. "I want to apologize for not saving their babies," he said, according to PBS.

Compiled by True News from reporting by PBS NewsHour, Alaska's News Source, Hawaii News Now and KWCH 12. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/414