BREAKING: Two students killed, nine wounded in shooting at Brown University; suspect still at large

WEBDESK – A shooting at Brown University late Saturday left two students dead and nine others wounded, eight of them critically, triggering a massive manhunt and lockdown across Rhode Island’s capital, officials said.

Providence Mayor Brett Smiley confirmed the deaths and said a ninth victim was injured by bullet fragments. Police were searching for a male suspect dressed in black, possibly wearing a mask, who fled the scene after opening fire inside the university’s Barus & Holley engineering building, where exams were underway.

“The individual responsible is still at large,” Smiley told reporters, calling the incident “devastating” as the city approached the holiday season. “We are a week and a half away from Christmas. Two people died today and others are fighting for their lives.”

Deputy Police Chief Timothy O’Hara said investigators recovered shell casings from the building but were not yet prepared to release further details about the weapon or motive. Authorities released a video of the suspected gunman as part of the search.

Streets surrounding Brown’s College Hill campus were sealed off for hours as emergency vehicles flooded the area and security was heightened citywide. Federal law enforcement agencies and police from neighboring jurisdictions joined the search, which officials said was complicated by large holiday crowds downtown and concerts drawing thousands of people.

Brown University President Christina Paxson described the shooting as the institution’s “worst nightmare,” confirming that all or nearly all of the victims were students. The university issued an immediate shelter-in-place order as news of the attack spread.

Students described scenes of fear and confusion. Chiang-Heng Chien, a Brown student, told local television station WJAR that he and others hid under desks in a laboratory for nearly two hours after receiving an alert about an active shooter nearby.

Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee vowed swift justice. “We’re going to make sure that we catch the individual who brought so much suffering to so many people,” he said.

U.S. President Donald Trump said he had been briefed on the shooting, calling it “terrible” and urging prayers for the victims and their families.

The attack adds to a growing list of mass shootings in the United States, where such incidents at schools and public places occur far more frequently than in other developed nations, reigniting debate over gun violence and campus safety.