Tumbler Ridge, a mining town, confronts a recent tragedy

Officials say an 18-year-old attacker killed family members and several people at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School before dying; the small mining town, founded in 1981, is grieving and the mayor urged residents to support one another.

Tumbler Ridge is grieving after a deadly incident that left multiple people dead and the town searching for ways to cope. The mayor described the events as devastating and asked residents to look after one another. The town was built in the early 1980s as a planned coal-mining community and later experienced economic shifts when local mines closed in 2000 and 2003. In recent years Tumbler Ridge marked its 40th anniversary and saw renewed mining activity before this latest event. What is known: - Local officials reported that an 18-year-old attacker killed her mother and stepbrother, then went to Tumbler Ridge Secondary School where a teacher and five students were killed, and the attacker died by suicide. - Mayor Darryl Krakowka said the community is strong and asked people to hold close those who are injured, grieving and affected. - Tumbler Ridge is a small town of roughly a couple of thousand people that was founded in 1981 to support coal mines built in the 1980s. - The town’s original mines closed in 2000 and 2003, and the community later sought to attract residents with affordable housing and its natural setting; new mining activity had returned in recent years. Summary: The event has placed the remote mining town under an international spotlight and left residents and officials focusing on support and recovery. Undetermined at this time.