DENVER — Three teenagers were injured in a shooting at Evergreen High School on Wednesday afternoon. The incident occurred around 12:30 p.m. at the school, located about 30 miles west of Denver, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

Authorities reported that the suspected shooter is among the injured. It remains unclear what led to the shooting or how the shooter was injured. None of the responding law enforcement officers discharged their weapons during the incident, Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Jacki Kelley stated.

The shooting took place both inside and outside the school building. Officers arrived on the scene within five minutes and located the shooter quickly. All three injured teens were transported to St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood, where they were initially listed in critical condition. By early evening, one teen was reported to be in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Dr. Brian Blackwood, the hospital’s trauma director.

Evergreen High School has more than 900 students and is situated in a largely forested area. The town of Evergreen has a population of approximately 9,300 residents. In response to the shooting, over 100 police officers from various departments in the Denver area were dispatched to the school.

Parents were directed to a nearby elementary school, Bergen Meadow Elementary, to reunite with their children. Wendy Nueman, a parent, shared her experience of trying to reach her 15-year-old daughter, a sophomore at Evergreen High. After initially not being able to contact her, Nueman received a call from her daughter using a borrowed phone. "She just said she was OK. She couldn’t hardly speak," Nueman recounted, expressing her relief and fear. "It’s super scary. We feel like we live in a little bubble here. Obviously, no one is immune."

Eighteen students fled the school and sought refuge in a nearby home. Resident Don Cygan described how a group of students knocked on his door asking for help. He noted that one student reported hearing gunshots while in the cafeteria and ran out of the building. Cygan, a retired educator familiar with lockdown procedures, took down the names of the students and their parents as they arrived to pick them up. His wife, a retired nurse, assisted in calming the students and addressing their shock.

The incident has drawn comparisons to the tragic 1999 Columbine High School shooting, which resulted in 14 deaths. Kelley emphasized the fear experienced by parents and students during the event, stating, "This is the scariest thing you could ever think that could happen, and these parents were really frightened and so were the kids."

The investigation into the shooting is ongoing, and authorities do not believe there is any further threat to the community.