Two children, ages 5 and 6, wounded in shooting at Northern California school
A suspected gunman was killed after a shooting at Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists in Palermo, Butte County.
(KTXL) -- Two children were injured in a shooting at a religious school in Northern California on Wednesday before the suspected gunman apparently killed himself, sheriff's officials said.
The shooting happened around 1:00 p.m. at the Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists, a small private K-8 school near Palermo, roughly 60 miles north of Sacramento.
Deputies arrived to find the suspect dead near a playground from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Butte County Sheriff Corey Honea said during a Wednesday evening press conference.
The injured students, two boys aged 5 and 6, were taken to a hospital. Honea said both are still receiving treatment but did not provide any additional details about their conditions.
"This is horribly tragic," the sheriff said.
A preliminary investigation indicates that the suspect went to the school to meet with the principal about possibly enrolling a student, Honea said.
"Shortly after concluding that meeting, the principal heard shots being fired, heard screams, and that's when they determined, or found, that the two students had been shot," Honea said, adding that deputies are still working to verify the sequence of events.
Emergency personnel state outside the Feather River Adventist School after a shooting Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Oroville, Calif. (Michael Weber/The Chico Enterprise-Record via AP) 
Police tape blocks a road outside the Feather River Adventist School after a shooting Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Oroville, Calif. (Michael Weber/The Chico Enterprise-Record via AP)
A motive is also unclear, though Honea said investigators received information that the suspect "may have targeted this school because of its affiliation with the Seventh-Day Adventist Church."
The suspect's name has not yet been released.
Following the shooting, the remainder of the students were taken to a church in Oroville, where they could reunite with their parents.
The school's website says it has been at its current location since 1965, and an update from 2022 says it had just over 30 students. The community of Palermo is a census-designated place with a population of nearly 9,500, according to the U.S. Census.
The California Highway Patrol said a nearly three-mile-long stretch of Highway 70 where the school is located was closed and that traffic was being diverted.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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