The sense of safety inside the Covenant School in Nashville was shattered Monday when a former student burst into the private Christian school wielding an assault-style rifle and killed three 9-year-old children and three adults.
The shooter, 28-year-old Audrey Hale, was killed by police. Authorities believe the six victims were targeted randomly.
Here’s a timeline of what happened:
9:57 a.m.
Hale sends an ominous message to childhood friend Averianna Patton on Instagram, Patton told CNN on Tuesday. The direct message from Hale said, “I’m planning to die today” and that Patton would see it on the news.
Disturbed by the message, Patton contacted her father for advice. He suggested she call a suicide prevention line for assistance, which she did. But because Patton was not the person at risk of harming herself, the call recipient advised Patton to contact local law enforcement, she said.
Around 10:13 a.m.
Patton calls the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office in Nashville but was on hold for “maybe like 7 minutes,” she said. By then, the deadly rampage at Covenant School had already started.
10:13 a.m.
The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department receives a call about an active shooter inside the school. Surveillance video shows the shooter entering the school by firing through glass doors and climbing through.
10:18 a.m.
Timestamped surveillance footage from inside the school shows Hale armed with multiple weapons walking down a hallway.
10:24 a.m.
Nashville officers arrive at the school, Police Chief John Drake said. Bodycam footage shows police entering the school amid wailing fire alarms and immediately going to several rooms to look for the shooter.
Officers hear gunfire on the second floor and rush up the stairs as the shots grow louder, the video shows.
10:27 a.m.
Officer Rex Engelbert sees the shooter and fires about four rounds with an assault-style rifle. His bodycam footage shows the attacker collapsing.
Officer Michael Collazo then moved toward the shooter while it appeared a gun was still in the assailant’s hand. Collazo appeared to shoot the attacker on the ground four times with a handgun, yelling “Stop moving!” The officers finally approached the assailant, moved a gun away and then radioed “Suspect down! Suspect down!”
