A Taft High School student was airlifted to a Bakersfield hospital after being shot by another student in a science classroom Thursday, multiple news outlets reported.
According to Kero, a news affiliate of CNN, the unidentified Taft High School student shot another student shortly after 9 a.m. Thursday. The weapon, a shotgun, was recovered and the suspect was in custody, police told the television station.
Taft High School is located in San Joaquin Valley, about 40 miles south of Bakersfield and approximately 120 miles northwest of Los Angeles.
Thursday's incident comes less than a month after a 20-year-old man shot his way into killing 20 students and six teachers before taking his own life. That Dec. 14 shooting has led to calls for greater school security across the nation, including in California.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson issued the following statement Thursday on the Taft High School shooting:
"Our hearts go out to the family and the student who was critically injured today at Taft High School, as well as to the entire school community. I commend the heroic actions of the classroom teacher and the campus supervisor who risked their safety to protect students, no doubt saving lives in the process. I am also grateful for the swift arrival of police and their arrest of the suspect.
"Our schools must be safe places for students, and today’s events remind us we have work to do—as a state and as a nation—to reach that goal."
