Brown University shooting: Two students killed as police rescue students hiding in library | Watch

Brown University shooting: Two students dead, campus locked down as police rescue students from library

More than 400 law enforcement personnel were deployed on Saturday after a shooting at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, left two students dead and nine others injured, authorities said. The Ivy League campus remained under lockdown for several hours as police searched for a suspect who remains at large.

The shooting occurred inside the Barus & Holley Engineering building, where students were taking final exams. Officials said the gunman entered the building, opened fire inside a classroom, and fled the scene. Streets surrounding the campus were sealed off, filled with emergency vehicles, and security was heightened across the city.

BROWN UNIVERSITY

🔔 Breaking - Cops rescue petrified Brown students hiding from shooter in university library: 📚 Prayers for all the affected families 🙏 #BrownUniversity#MassShooting#News#HopeStreet#News#BreakingNew#Police#FBI#Rhode_Islandpic.twitter.com/unuotsjr5V — Abhay (@AstuteGaba) December 14, 2025

Providence Deputy Police Chief Timothy O’Hara said the suspect is believed to be a male, possibly in his 30s, dressed in black and perhaps wearing a mask. Shell casings were recovered from the scene, though police declined to provide further details. Authorities said a video of the suspect would be released as part of the investigation.

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“We are a week and a half away from Christmas. And two people died today,” Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said. “So please pray for those families.”

Brown University Health said seven of the nine injured victims were in critical condition, while others were stabilised. University President Christina Paxson confirmed that all or nearly all of the victims were students. “This is the day one hopes never happens, and it has,” she told reporters.

Following the shooting, Brown University instructed students and staff to shelter in place. Student Chiang-Heng Chien told local media that he and three others hid under desks in a laboratory for nearly two hours after receiving alerts about an active shooter. Videos later surfaced showing students crouching behind shelves inside the university library as loud bangs were heard outside.

Police officers in SWAT gear later entered the library, escorting students out. One officer was heard reassuring them, saying, “Obviously there’s something going on, we’re here to help you… just listen to our commands we’ll get you out of here now.”

Officials later clarified that no suspect is currently in custody, contradicting an earlier statement from the university that one person had been detained. Police also said they have not yet obtained video footage showing the shooter inside the building. “I haven’t seen him on video inside that building,” an official said.

President Donald Trump said he had been briefed on the incident, calling it “terrible.” “All we can do right now is pray for the victims and for those that were very badly hurt,” he said.

Among the survivors was Zoe Weissman, a sophomore who also survived the 2018 Parkland school shooting in Florida. “I think mentally I feel like I’m 12 again. These feels exactly how I felt in 2018,” she said, describing the trauma of experiencing another campus shooting.

Authorities said the shelter-in-place order remains in effect as the investigation continues, and Brown University has suspended regular activities while law enforcement works to ensure campus safety.