ROSWELL, N.M. — A gunman opened fire Tuesday at a middle school in the southeastern New Mexico city of Roswell, leaving at least two children injured before being taken into custody.

The shooting happened at 8:11 a.m. at Berrendo Middle School, as classes were starting for the day.

Brooke Linthicum of Eastern New Mexico Regional Medical Center said the two children were being treated following the shooting, but she had no information on the type or extent of their injuries.

Roswell police say the suspected shooter was arrested Tuesday, and the school was placed on lockdown. No details on the suspect were released.

Police say children will be bused to a nearby mall, where parents can pick up them up. Word of the shooting was posted on the Roswell Police Department’s Facebook page.

“We believe there are injuries but to what extent we don’t know yet,” said New Mexico State Police spokesman Damyan Brown.

Roswell City Councilor Savino Sanchez said he found out about the shooting after receiving a phone call. He said once news of the shooting spread throughout town, residents began to worry. “I know a lot of people are concerned,” he said.

Roswell has a population of about 50,000. It a center for ranching and farming and is home to the New Mexico Military Institute, the only state-supported military college in the West. The city is perhaps best known as the site of an alleged UFO crash in 1947.


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