Youth shoots himself outside school in Saskatchewan hamlet
A tiny francophone community in Saskatchewan is reeling after a youth fatally shot himself outside the local school.
RCMP said Wednesday morning an initial investigation has revealed that a boy under the age of 18 died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound outside of École St. Isidore in the hamlet of St. Isidore-de-Bellevue.
The hamlet of 110 people is located about 100 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon.
No one else was physically injured and the incident has been deemed non-criminal in nature, the RCMP said.
The youth, whose name is not being released, was a student at the school.
"Given this is a small community of just a couple hundred residents an event like today's is a tragic event for the entire community, not just the immediate school personal and students," Tom Michaud, the student services coordinator for Counseil des Écoles Fransaskois, said Wednesday. "We are here to support the entire community as well."
According to Michaud, the student shot himself before the 9 a.m. start time for school. He added that no other students were present.
The CEF has dispatched a number of grief counsellors to the community to provide assistance to students and staff. They will also provide guidance to parents about how to speak to their children about the shooting.
On Wednesday students were given a choice of staying at school or going home, in light of what happened. Michaud said most of the younger children stayed and many of the older ones went home.
St. Isidore school has about 115 students from pre-K to Grade 12.
Wakaw RCMP continue to investigate, along with the office of the chief coroner.
