A special needs boy who was among those injured in the Kentucky high school shooting had been giving out hugs and high fives to his classmates when the gunfire erupted.
Daniel Austin, 17, was shot in his right arm when a 15-year-old boy opened fire on students, killing two and injuring 18 others, in a packed atrium at Marshall County High School on Tuesday morning.
The teenager, who has a form of autism, had been in the busy common area in the center of the high school where several hallways meet and children gather before classes.
Daniel Austin, 17, (right) was shot in his arm when a teen gunman opened fire on students in a packed atrium at Marshall County High School on Tuesday morning. He is pictured above with his brother Shane (left)
His brother Shane Austin told Local 6 that Daniel was listening to music and giving his classmate’s high fives at the time.
His brother Shane Austin posted a screenshot of them Face-timing soon after the surgery, saying: ‘Look at this Superman. God thank you! He’s through surgery!’
Shane, who wasn’t at the school when the shooting broke out, managed to speak to his brother before he was airlifted to hospital to undergo surgery.
Daniel’s prognosis is still unclear but his brother posted a screenshot of them Face-timing soon after the surgery, saying: ‘Look at this Superman. God thank you! He’s through surgery!’
His mother Andrea Austin told CNN on Tuesday that he might need to have his arm amputated.
The boy’s parents had been calling his cell phone repeatedly until someone in the emergency department picked up and told them he was injured.
Daniel’s brother urged others to pray for his recovery.
‘My brother means the world to me. Will everyone please pray for him he’s being so strong I love him to death and just for him to be hurt in this awful event is killing me inside because he’s a strong funny amazing person I just don’t get how anyone could do this to my little brother,’ he wrote.
‘I love you Daniel Austin you are going to be strong through this like everything else and I promise I’m going to take you to toys r us after this.’
Daniel, who has a form of autism, had been in the busy common area in the center of the high school where several hallways meet and children gather before classes
Bailey Holt (left), 15, was one of two students who suffered fatal gunshot wounds in Tuesday’s shooting rampage at a Kentucky high school. Preston Cope (right), also 15, was rushed to hospital but died of a gunshot wound to the head
Police were seen leading a teen, believed to be the 15-year-old shooter, away in handcuffs after he opened fire on classmates at Marshall County High School in Kentucky on Tuesday morning
Bailey Nicole Holt and Preston Ryan Cope, both 15, were killed and another 18 people injured when a fellow student opened fire with a handgun.
The gunman’s shooting spree only ended when he ran out of bullets.
Police are not identifying the teen shooter but he has been arrested and will be charged with two counts of murder and multiple counts of attempted murder.
No motive for the shooting has been released.
The case against the suspect will begin in juvenile court, which is closed to the public and the records sealed under Kentucky law. Prosecutors will request a judge move it to adult court, at which point the details will no longer be secret.
The teen is being held at a regional juvenile jail in Paducah – about a half-hour away from the high school.
In addition to the two students killed in Tuesday’s shooting, 14 others were shot and four children were injured as they ran from the gunfire. The victims ranged in age from 14 to 18 years.
Five students remained in critical condition in various hospitals late Tuesday.
The school was placed in lock down and the entrances to the school were blocked off by first responders