At 9:57 am this morning, The Ohio State University’s Emergency Management services published an update via social media to notify those on campus and in the area that there was an active shooter on campus. “Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College,” stated the service on Facebook and Twitter. Emergency Management services continued to reiterate that those in the area should “shelter in place” until the area was secured at 11:14 am. The remainder of classes were also announced as canceled for the day. The following update was published online by the Department of Public Safety at OSU at 12:21 pm, which clarified that the attacker may not have been wielding a gun as first thought, and instead had attacked victims with a knife and a vehicle:
“Ohio State University Police and local law enforcement continue to respond to a public safety incident on Ohio State’s campus. A suspect has been shot and reported deceased. Victim injuries include stab wounds, injury by motor vehicle and other injuries that are being evaluated. At the recommendation of law enforcement, campus alerts for shelter in place have been lifted. Campus remains open during the continued investigation, although classes have been canceled for the remainder of the day. Facts are still being verified. We will hold a media briefing as soon as we are able. The university will continue to share information through Buckeye Alert and emergency.osu.edu. Our top priority remains the safety and security of our campus community. Our thoughts and prayers are with those injured and their families.”
OSU President Michael Drake addressed reporters today to answer questions about the incident. “We’re pleased that no one was injured more seriously than they were and we all know we live in an open society where these kinds of tragedies happen some place it seems on far to frequent a basis,” said Drake. “So what we do on the campus is everything we can to make the campus safe. We have multiple trainings in place… and we’re pleased with how well those work and we’re pleased with how people have responded to this tragedy today.” Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther released an official statement after the area was announced as secure. “As the situation at the Ohio State University unfolds, we lift up the victims and the first responders in our thoughts and prayers,” he stated. “We ask for students and university employees to continue to follow instructions of Ohio State authorities.” Update (11/28 4:40pm) — OSU Director of Public Safety Monica Moll announced at a press conference this afternoon that the suspect in the attack was an 18-year-old OSU student named Abdul Razaq Ali Artan, who was a Somali refugee, and a legal permanent resident of the United States. The suspect was shot and killed by OSU Police Officer Officer Alan Horujko. For more information, visit dps.osu.edu/campus-status. Update (11/28 1:32pm) — More details added to article.