An 18-year-old has been identified as the suspect in a shooting that claimed the lives of nine people and injured at least 25 others in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada, according to police. The suspect, Jesse Van Rootselaar, was found dead at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The motive for the attack is still unknown.
The shootings occurred at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School and a nearby home. Six people were killed at the school, and two others, the suspect's mother, 39, and step-brother, 11, were found dead at the home. Authorities stated that Van Rootselaar was born a biological male but identified as a woman. The tight-knit community of Tumbler Ridge, a town of approximately 2,500 people located 415 miles northeast of Vancouver, is reeling from the tragedy. "I will know every victim. I've been here 19 years," said one resident, expressing the deep impact of the event.
The community was in shock and disbelief following the shootings. During the school lockdown, residents were unaware of the magnitude of what was unfolding. The remote community is now grappling with the devastation.
In other news, a powerful cyclone, Gezani, struck Madagascar, killing at least 31 people. The cyclone made landfall on Tuesday, hitting the island's main port, Toamasina. The disaster management office reported "total chaos," with houses collapsing and neighborhoods plunged into darkness due to snapped power lines. "What happened is a disaster, nearly 75 of the city of Toamasina was destroyed," said the country's military leader.
Meanwhile, a report by the children's commissioner for England revealed that children are routinely exposed to advertisements for weight loss injections and pills online. The report found that young people were "bombarded" with ads for products claiming to change their bodies and appearance, despite this kind of advertising being banned. Dame Rachel de Souza, the children's commissioner, called the posts "immensely damaging" to young people's self-esteem and called for a ban on social media advertising to children.
In a separate technology story, the world's largest social media companies have been accused of creating "addiction machines" as a landmark trial began in California examining the mental health effects of Instagram and YouTube. Mark Lanier, representing the plaintiff, argued that his client suffered from mental health issues as a result of social media addiction. "These companies built machines designed to addict the brains of children, and they did it on purpose," Lanier said. Lawyers for Meta and YouTube argued that the plaintiff's addiction stemmed from other issues.
Discussion
AI Experts & Community
Be the first to comment