<3 to Tech

What's this world coming to? Please pray for VA Tech.

Officials: Gunman dead after bloody campus rampage

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POSTED: 3:42 p.m. EDT, April 16, 2007
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(CNN)
-- A lone gunman is dead after officials said he killed at least 21
people and perhaps more Monday during shootings in a dorm and a
classroom at Virginia Tech -- the deadliest school attack in U.S.
history.

It was not clear if the gunman was killed by police or if he took his own life.

Virginia
Reps. Tom Davis and Randy Forbes said they were told that 32 people,
including the gunman, were dead. The two said they were given the new
death toll during a phone conversation with Gov. Tom Kaine's chief of
staff, but the governor's office was unable to confirm that number.

In
a separate interview, Forbes said he heard the shooter was a student,
but he emphasized that he had no solid information on the shooter's
identity or his motive.

"Some victims were shot in a classroom,"
university police Chief Wendell Flinchum said of the shootings, which
occurred two hours apart. (Watch the police chief explain where bodies were found )

Spokespersons
for hospitals in Roanoke, Christiansburg, Blacksburg and Salem told CNN
that they were treating 29 people from the shootings.

Sharon
Honaker with Carilion New River Medical Center in Christiansburg said
one of the four gunshot victims being treated there was in critical
condition.

Scott Hill, a spokesman for Montgomery Regional
Hospital in Blacksburg, where 17 wounded students were taken, said he
wasn't expecting any more victims.

"Today the university was
struck with a tragedy that we consider of monumental proportions," said
university President Charles Steger. "The university is shocked and
indeed horrified." (Map of Blacksburg)

The
killings mark the deadliest school shooting in U.S. history, surpassing
attacks at Columbine High School in 1999 and at the University of Texas
in 1966.

One person was killed and others were wounded at
multiple locations inside a dormitory about 7:15 a.m., Flinchum said.
Two hours later, another shooting at Norris Hall, the engineering
science and mechanics building, resulted in multiple casualties, the
university reported. (Campus map)

The
first reported shooting occurred at West Ambler Johnston Hall, a coed
dormitory that houses 895 students. The dormitory, one of the largest
residence halls on the 2,600-acre campus, is located near the drill
field and stadium.

Amie Steele, editor-in-chief of the campus newspaper, said one of her reporters at the dormitory reported "mass chaos."

The
reporter said there were "lots of students running around, going crazy,
and the police officers were trying to settle everyone down and keep
everything under control," according to Steele. (Watch police, ambulances hustle to the scene )

Kristyn
Heiser said she was in class about 9:30 a.m. when she and her
classmates saw about six gun-wielding police officers run by a window.

"We
were like, 'What's going on?' Because this definitely is a quaint town
where stuff doesn't really happen. It's pretty boring here," said
Heiser during a phone interview as she sat on her classroom floor.

Student reports 'mayhem'

Student
Matt Waldron said he did not hear the gunshots because he was listening
to music, but he heard police sirens and saw officers hiding behind
trees with their guns drawn.

"They told us to get out of there so we ran across the drill field as quick as we could," he said.

Waldron described the scene on campus as "mayhem." (Watch a student's recording of police responding to loud bangs )

"It
was kind of scary," he said. "These two kids I guess had panicked and
jumped out of the top-story window and the one kid broke his ankle and
the other girl was not in good shape just lying on the ground."

Madison
Van Duyne said she and her classmates in a media writing class were on
"lockdown" in their classrooms. They were huddled in the middle of the
classroom, writing stories about the shootings and posting them online.

The university is updating its more than 26,000 students through
e-mails, and an Internet webcam is broadcasting live pictures of the
campus.

The shootings came three days after a bomb threat
Friday forced the cancellation of classes in three buildings, WDBJ in
Roanoke reported. Also, the 100,000-square-foot Torgersen Hall was
evacuated April 2 after police received a written bomb threat, The
Roanoke Times reported.

Last August, the first day of classes
was cut short by a manhunt after an escaped prisoner was accused of
killing a security guard at a Blacksburg hospital and a sheriff's
deputy.

After the Monday shootings, students were instructed to stay indoors and away from windows, police at the university said.

"Virginia
Tech has canceled all classes. Those on campus are asked to remain
where they are, lock their doors and stay away from windows. Persons
off campus are asked not to come to campus," a statement on the
university Web site said.

The university has scheduled a
convocation for 2 p.m. ET Tuesday. Classes also have been canceled
Tuesday. In Washington, the House and Senate observed moments of
silence for the victims and President Bush was reportedly "horrified"
by news of the attacks.

"His thoughts and prayers are with them, and we are monitoring the situation," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

Before Monday, the deadliest school shootings came in 1966 and 1999.

In
the former, Charles Joseph Whitman, a 25-year-old ex-Marine, killed 13
people on the University of Texas campus. He was killed by police.

In
1999, 17-year-old Dylan Klebold and 18-year-old Eric Harris -- armed
with guns and pipe bombs -- killed 12 students and a teacher before
killing themselves at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado.

JMU Clean Energy Coalition
“Green Team”
Tip o’ the Week

This week's tip is to recycle!

Something so simple can reduce our environmental footprint tremendously.

By
recycling one ton (2,000 lbs.) of paper, we save: 17 trees; 6,953
gallons of water; 463 gallons of oil; 587 pounds of air pollution; 3.06
cubic yards of landfill space and 4,077 Kilowatt hours of energy.

Recycling
one aluminum can saves enough electricity to run a TV for three hours.
Aluminum recycling is so efficient that it can take as few as 60 days
for a can to be collected, melted down and made into a new can sitting
on a grocery store shelf.

Recycling plastic saves twice as much energy as burning it in an incinerator.

Contact your town or city government to find out more information on a recycling center near you!

The "Green Team" is presenting a Tip o' the Week each week
in build-up for Earth Week events, as well as promoting
efficient energy use a smaller environmental footprint for
James Madison University. We ask for your support in
encouraging and assisting JMU to be more "green" everyday.

Please feel free to contact the Clean Energy Coalition
("Green Team") with any questions you might have or even
more tips on how to get involved in "greening" JMU.

Clean Energy Coalition Website: http://www.jmugreenteam.com

Stay Green!

Improve Your Quality of Life!

Believe in the goodness of people

Forgive Easily!

Do things that keep yourself emotionally and physically healthy

Appreciate your opportunities

Take massive action to be massively successful!

Refuse to settle for mediocrity - no matter what you've been told in the past. You deserve the best.

Be pro-active to accompish the things you feel strongest about

You will only fail wheen you stop trying

As Mark Twain said: Never let your education get in the way of your learning

Never hesitate when it comes to love

Be humble

Live today like it's your last!!