Dismay continues in the United States over the shooting at Robb Elementary, located in the city of Uvalde, Texas, in which 23 deceased people were reported, including 19 children and two adults, who taught at the same institution.
According to the first information from the authorities, the attacker was an 18-year-old resident of the city, known as Salvador Ramos, according to the governor of Texas, Republican Greg Abbott.
Additionally, Ramos, 42, explained that he had not spent much time with his son, whom he took to Texas for the covid-19 virus pandemic: “I want people to know that I am sorry. I’m sorry for what my son did. I never expected him to do something like that.”
In turn, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, Steven McCraw, said that the Police made a “wrong decision” by not entering the Uvalde school earlier, where on Tuesday an armed youth killed 19 children and two teachers. before taking refuge in a classroom.
“From the benefit of hindsight … it was the wrong call, period,” McCraw said at a tense news conference.
“If I thought this could help, I’d apologize.” he added very excited.
Nineteen officers waited in the school hallway for a tactical unit entering classrooms about an hour after the gunman, 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, entered the building Tuesday.
Pressed by journalists to explain the delay, which has drawn criticism, the official said they thought “there might not be any survivors.”
Nevertheless, the Police received numerous calls from various people in the two affected classrooms, including one from a student at 12:16 local time –34 minutes before the Police responded at 12:50–, reporting that “eight to nine students were alive,” McCraw said.
In one of his first calls, this student, who also reported that there were several deaths, asked: “Please send the police now.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said at a separate news conference that he was “misled” about the police response by inaccurate initial reports. “It makes me livid,” he said.
“Pain of families”
Meanwhile, the main lobby America’s pro-weapons, the National Rifle Association (NRA), holds its annual convention in Houston, amid controversy over the timing of the meeting, which led politicians and movie stars country music to cancel their attendance.
“These tragedies turn our stomachs,” Wayne LaPierre, head of the NRA, declared Friday at the opening of the conference. But “restricting the most basic human rights that allow Americans to defend themselves is not the solution, never was,” he added.
Former President Donald Trump and Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz will also speak at the event.
In a sign of their discomfort, several country music stars decided not to attend. Among them, Don McLean, known for his song American Piewho considered “disrespectful” to act there.
Another notable absence is the firm Daniel Defense, manufacturer of the AR-15 semi-automatic rifle used by the perpetrator of the massacre in Uvalde.
But thousands of gun enthusiasts milled around Houston’s sprawling convention center, packed with manufacturer booths displaying semi-automatic rifles and hunting gear.
“Personally, I think there should be more education about weapons.”explained to AFP Lissy, 31, an ex-military man who is looking to find a new pistol to hide under her skirt, because “it’s too hot for pants in Texas.”
The NRA, which has 5 million members, said that to ensure Trump’s safety –to whom the organization donated tens of millions of dollars for his two presidential campaigns– firearms would be prohibited in the room.
*With information from AFP.