GoFundMe fundraisers established for Apalachee High School shooting victims: How to help
A Georgia school shooting Wednesday morning left four people shot and killed and nine others injured.
The shooting, at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, claimed the lived of two students and two teachers. Eight students and one teacher were also treated for injuries.
In the aftermath of the shooting, there has been an outpouring of support nationwide.
Multiple fundraising campaigns on GoFundMe have already raised more than $100,000 as of September 5. GoFundMe has also established a portal for verified accounts related to the shooting.
A statement on the portal reads in part, "On September 4, 2024, multiple people were killed and injured at a shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia. The GoFundMe community is coming together to support those affected. Donate to verified fundraisers today to help the people and families affected."
The statement goes on to say that the company's trust and safety team will continue to update the portal as more fundraisers are verified, according to GoFundMe.
USA TODAY has reached out to GoFundMe for further comment.
Complete timeline of events:How Georgia's Apalachee High School shooting unfolded
Georgia school shooting details
Reports of an active shooter at Apalachee High School began reaching law enforcement at around 10:20 a.m. on Wednesday morning Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said Wednesday.
The victims were identified as Mason Schermerhorn, 14, Christian Angulo, 14, Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53.
The suspected shooter, a 14-year-old student, was arrested and charged with murder according to the GBI. Authorities said he would be prosecuted as an adult.
All schools throughout Barrow County went into lockdown as a "precautionary measure," the sheriff's office said Wednesday morning around 11:30 a.m. ET.
Barrow County School System Superintendent Dallas LeDuff said later Wednesday afternoon the schools will be closed for the rest of the week, and crisis counseling will be available.
Apalachee is one of two high schools in the Barrow County school system. It has about 1,900 students in a rural town of 18,300 people. Winder is about 30 miles from Athens, Georgia.
According to a database by USA TODAY, the Associated Press and Northeastern University, Wednesday’s massacre is the 604th mass killing in the U.S. since 2006 in which four or more people are killed. The database has tracked 3,120 fatalities in mass killings across the United States in 18 years.
A community mourns
Georgia officials are continuing to monitor the situation.
"I have directed all available state resources to respond to the incident at Apalachee High School and urge all Georgians to join my family in praying for the safety of those in our classrooms, both in Barrow County and across the state," Gov. Brian Kemp said on Wednesday.
"Leigh Ann and I are praying for the victims, their families, and all students at Apalachee High School in Barrow County," U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, who represents Barrow County, Georgia where the school is located said in a statement. "We extend our gratitude to law enforcement for their swift action to secure the school and get the shooter in custody."
On Wednesday evening, Winder residents gathered for a vigil to honor the victims.
''Love will prevail over what happened today," County Commissioner Alex Ward said.
Jeanine Santucci, Minnah Ashad, Jonathan Limehouse, Wayne Ford, Michael Loria, Ryne Dennis, Chloe Kim, and Vanessa Countryman contributed to this report.
Max Hauptman is a Trending Reporter for USA TODAY. He can be reached at [email protected]