Flags across Canada at half-mast as country mourns deadly school shooting

​​​​​​​By Merve Aydogan

HAMILTON, Canada (AA) - Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney ordered all flags on government buildings across the country to be flown at half-mast on Wednesday after a deadly school shooting in the town of Tumbler Ridge in the western province of British Columbia.

"Following yesterday's tragic shootings in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., I have asked that Canada’s flag atop the Peace Tower, and across all government buildings, be flown at half-mast for the next seven days as our nation mourns with the community," Carney wrote on the US social media company X.

He delivered visibly emotional remarks in Ottawa and told the families of the victims, "the nation mourns with you. Canada stands by you."

Carney said many world leaders, including King Charles III as well as those from Britain, France, India, Finland, Norway and Australia, have called to convey their condolences.

According to a note from the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday, Carney "suspended" his upcoming visit to Germany to attend the Munich Security Conference.

The suspect in the deadly shooting was identified as Jesse Strang, who is allegedly a transgender teen, according to a report by CTV News.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres also expressed sorrow for the deadly shooting, his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said during a news conference.

"I can tell you that the secretary general was saddened to learn of the tragic shooting that took place in Tumble Tidge in British Columbia, Canada," Dujarric said, adding that Guterres "extends his deepest condolences to those affected and his sympathies to the government and people of Canada."

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said nine victims and one suspect died in the shooting, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).

Six people were found dead inside the Tumbler Ridge Secondary School; one person died while being transported to the hospital, and two were found dead at a residence in the community believed to be connected to the shooting, it reported.

Police said the suspect was found dead inside the school from "a self-inflicted injury."

The attack is the second-deadliest school shooting in Canadian history, after a December 1989 shooting at Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal that left 14 dead.

Tumbler Ridge, a town of about 2,400 people in western Canada, is located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, 680 kilometers (422 miles) from the US border.

An investigation is ongoing.