19-year-old shoots up Florida school, kills 17 in one of America’s deadliest mass shootings

At least 17 adults and children have been killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida after a former student of the school unleashed mayhem late Wednesday.

The student, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, had been expelled for unspecified disciplinary reasons. He is due in court Thursday.

He was armed with a AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle and multiple magazines. He began shooting outside the school and continued inside, where 12 of the victims were killed.

Students were said to be leaving the third floor when they heard gunshots, prompting them to run back to their classroom. Their teacher was shot and killed as he tried to lock the door.

Cruz proceeded to other parts of the building, shooting through classrooms where students were crouched in corners and hiding in closets.

All of the victims have been identified.

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Authorities said Cruz, after the shooting, concealed himself in the fleeing crowd and was eventually arrested in nearby Coral Springs.

Fourteen others were wounded in the shooting, five of whom had life-threatening injuries.

The shooting is among the deadliest mass shootings in modern US history and incidents such as this strengthens the call for gun control in the United States.