By Michael Hernandez
WASHINGTON (AA) – An unidentified man rammed his car into a group of individuals Monday at Ohio State University before exiting and stabbing bystanders.
At least nine people have been sent to the hospital following the attack that ended when police fatally shot the suspect.
“Victim injuries include stab wounds, injury by motor vehicle and other injuries that are being evaluated,” the university said in a statement.
Initial reports from the campus were of an active shooter, but it does not appear that the suspect opened fire.
Students at the school had a shelter in place order lifted, but parts of the campus remain off-limits and classes have been canceled as police investigate.
The suspect has not been formally identified, but NBC News reported he was an 18-year-old student of the university who was a Somali refugee living in the U.S. as a permanent legal resident.
It is unclear why the man carried out the attack, but authorities have called it “deliberate”.
Columbus, Ohio, Police Chief Kim Jacobs reportedly said authorities are looking into the attack as a terrorist act.
President Barack Obama has been briefed on the incident by his homeland security adviser Lisa Monaco, according to the White House.
The university first sent out a “Run, Hide, Fight” warning on Twitter to students just before 10 a.m. local time (1500GMT).
The protocol is for responding to an active shooter situation. It includes keeping an escape route in mind, hiding in an area out of the shooter's view and fighting the shooter only as a last resort.
More than 65,000 students attend Ohio State University.