10 confirmed dead

UPDATE: 2:20 p.m.

A 17-year-old carrying a shotgun and a revolver opened fire at a Houston-area high school Friday, killing 10 people, most of them students, authorities said. It was the nation's deadliest such attack since the massacre in Florida that gave rise to a campaign by teens for gun control.

The suspected shooter, who was in custody on murder charges, also had explosive devices, including a Molotov cocktail, that were found in the school and nearby, said Gov. Greg Abbott, who called the assault "one of the most heinous attacks that we've ever seen in the history of Texas schools."

Authorities offered no immediate motive for the shooting. The governor said the assailant intended to kill himself but gave up and told police that he did not have the courage to take his own life.

Another 10 people were wounded at the school in Santa Fe, a city of about 13,000 people roughly 30 miles (48 kilometres) southeast of Houston. The wounded included a school police officer who was the first to confront the suspect and got shot in the arm.

The suspect was identified as Dimitrios Pagourtzis.

Pagourtzis plays on the Santa Fe High School junior varsity football team and is a member of a dance squad with a local Greek Orthodox church. Acquaintances described him as quiet and unassuming, an avid video game player who routinely wore a black trench coat and black boots to class.

The suspect used a shotgun and .38-revolver obtained from his father, who owned them legally, Abbott said. It was not clear whether the father knew his son had taken them.

One or two other people of interest were being interviewed about the shooting, Abbott said.

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UPDATE: 11:25 a.m.

At least one gunman opened fire at a Houston-area high school Friday, killing eight to 10 people, most of them students, authorities said, in the nation's deadliest such attack since the massacre in Florida that gave rise to a campaign by teens for gun control.

Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said he could not be precise about the number of deaths at Santa Fe High School, which went on lockdown around 8 a.m. One person was in custody, and a second person had been detained, he said.

An unknown number of possible explosive devices were found at the school and off campus. Authorities were in the process of rendering them safe and asked the public to call 911 if they see anything suspicious.

The district confirmed an unspecified number of injuries but did not release details. A school police officer was shot, officials said, but there was no immediate word on his condition.

Michael Farina, 17, said he was on the other side of campus when the shooting began and thought it was a fire drill. He was holding a door open for special education students in wheelchairs when a principal came bounding down the hall and telling everyone to run. Another teacher yelled out, "It is real."

The shooting was all but certain to reignite the national debate over gun regulations. While cable news channels carried hours of live coverage, survivors of the Feb. 14 attack in Parkland, Florida, took to social media to express grief and outrage.

"My heart is so heavy for the students of Santa Fe High School. It's an all too familiar feeling no one should have to experience. I am so sorry this epidemic touched your town — Parkland will stand with you now and forever," Marjory Stoneman Douglas student Jaclyn Corin said in a tweet.

Senior Logan Roberds said he was near the school's art room when he heard a fire alarm and left the building with other students. Once outside, Roberds said, he heard two loud bangs. He initially thought somebody was loudly hitting a trash can. Then came three more bangs.

"That's when the teachers told us to run," he said.

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UPDATE: 9 a.m.

Sheriffs report there are eight to 10 dead at a Texas high school shooting.

Most of the victims are said to be students.

Two people believed to be students have been detained.

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UPDATE: 7 a.m.

Law enforcement responded to a high school near Houston after an active shooter was reported on campus Friday, with at least one student saying she saw a man with a gun enter her classroom and start shooting as the class evacuated.

The Santa Fe school district issued an alert around 8 a.m. saying Santa Fe High School was on lockdown. Galveston County sheriff's Maj. Douglas Hudson said units were responding to reports of shots fired, but said he had no immediate details on whether anyone had been hurt.

One student told Houston television station KTRK in a telephone interview that a gunman came into her first-period art class and started shooting. The student said she saw one girl with blood on her leg as the class evacuated the room.

"We thought it was a fire drill at first but really, the teacher said, 'Start running,'" the student told the television station.

The student said she didn't get a good look at the shooter because she was running away. She said students escaped through a door at the back of the classroom.

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ORIGINAL: 6:44 a.m.

Law enforcement officers are responding to a high school near Houston after an active shooter was reported on campus.

The Santa Fe school district issued an alert Friday morning saying Santa Fe High School has been placed on lockdown.

Galveston County sheriff's Maj. Douglas Hudson says units are responding to reports of shots fired. He had no immediate details on whether anyone has been hurt.

Santa Fe is a city of about 13,000 residents, about 50 kilometres southeast of Houston.

One student told Houston television station KTRK in a telephone interview that a gunman came into her first-period art class and started shooting. The student says she saw one girl with blood on her leg as the class evacuated the room.

Authorities have not yet confirmed that report.