Girl, 12, shot in head trying to save classmates in Canada attack
Max Stephens
Warning: This story contains graphic content.
A 12-year-old girl was seriously injured in a shooting attack while trying to save her classmates at a school in Canada, her family said.
Maya Gebala was among 31 victims injured or killed by 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar after the transgender teenager opened fire on students and staff at Tumbler Ridge on Tuesday afternoon (Wednesday AEDT).
He was shot twice in the head and neck when he hid under a table after trying to lock the school library to prevent the gunman from entering.
Doctors warned the damage to his brain was “too much to bear” but he was recovering, his mother said Thursday (Canadian time).
Using a modified handgun and a rifle or shotgun, Van Rootselaar shot and killed three 12-year-old girls, two boys ages 12 and 13, and a 39-year-old female teacher. Van Rootselaar’s mother and half-brother were also shot and killed.
Two of the murdered children were identified as 12-year-olds Kylie May Smith and Abel Mwansa Jr. 25 more people were injured.
Five of the victims were found dead in the library and the sixth in the stairwell. Van Rootselaar died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound minutes before police arrived on the scene.
Maya and another girl, Paige Hoekstra, were airlifted to a children’s hospital in Vancouver, where they were treated for life-threatening injuries.
Maya’s aunt, Krysta Hunt, said her niece had surgery and was in “extremely critical” condition, with one bullet still above her left eye and another in her neck.
Maya’s chances of survival are uncertain, she told Canadian newspaper Global News.
Hunt said: “He had surgery yesterday to repair a brain haemorrhage and they are waiting to see how he responds to that.”
Maya’s mother, Cia Edmonds, said on Wednesday (Canadian time) that her daughter “needs a miracle” after doctors warned the family that the damage to her brain was “too much to bear.”
But a day later he said: “It’s a day of recovery. [She’s] affected!! [It’s] a stimulus, a kick, a gesture, but [it’s] something!!!” adding: “Pray for our community. Pray for support. “Pray for your recovery… We love you and are thinking of all of you in the ICU.”
Her aunt Hunt praised her friends, who noticed Maya moving her fingers, rushed to get her out of the library, and called for help.
“[Maya] He tried to lock the library door from the shooter to save the other kids, then he tried to lock the door, then he ran and hid under a table and [got shot]said Hunt.
He described Maya, an avid hockey player, as “a feisty little girl who is brave and strong.”
“You don’t think something like this is going to affect your family,” Hunt said. “This is crazy.”
On Wednesday night, Maya’s mother said doctors warned the family that the damage to Maya’s brain was “too much to bear.”
“I can feel her in my heart. I can feel her saying everything will be okay,” Edmonds wrote about her daughter on Facebook.
“I can’t respond to the slew of messages we’ve received, but know we are so grateful for all the love and support, we don’t know how long he’s been here.
“It was just another day. Our society is falling apart. Our baby needs a miracle.”
An online fundraising page to help with Maya’s medical expenses has received C$257,000 ($266,500) so far
Maya’s fellow student, Paige Hoekstra, was also in intensive care at the hospital and had surgery. His older brother Nicholas said: “We’re still trying to wrap our heads around it. “It all happened so quickly.
“Watching someone you love go through something like this is something you really can’t prepare for. We’re afraid, we hope, and we’re taking it one moment at a time.”
Abel Mwansa said he expected to see his son when he picked him up from church youth group Wednesday evening. Instead, he said Abel Jr. was “killed in cold blood.”
“This is a kid I raised to respect his elders, answer a call, be strong, work hard, focus on his studies, never skip school, and be a good kid,” he wrote on social media.
“One day I got the idea that she should be homeschooled, but she cried and said I loved being at school.”
Kylie May Smith’s aunt Shanon Dycke said the loss of her niece was “heartbreaking”.
“We are completely devastated and at a loss for words as we try to grasp the magnitude of the situation,” he said. “Their world, our world, collapsed.”
Zoey Benoit was described by her family as “tough, vibrant, smart, compassionate, and the strongest little girl you’ll ever meet.”
“Our family is devastated by this loss, but we will forever hold his memories so close to our hearts,” they added.
“She will be loved forever and never forgotten. We miss you beautiful girl Zoey, we love you so much.”
Commerciala Lampert, nicknamed “Tiki”, was described by a neighbor as a “loving, brave, witty, one-of-a-kind child” whose life was tragically cut short.
