What do we know about the school shooting in Iowa?

A sixth grade student has been killed and four others, including three students and a school administrator, have been injured in a school shooting in Iowa. Only one victim has been identified by name.

When did the shooting happen?

The shooting took place at Perry Middle and High School, in Perry, Iowa at 7:30am (13:30 GMT) on Thursday before the first day of classes had even begun. The shooting triggered an immediate police response as emergency vehicles and armed units rushed to the school.

Responding authorities also found a “pretty rudimentary” improvised explosive device in the school, which they disabled.

Among those injured was a school administrator, who was later identified by his alma mater as Principal Dan Marburger. He is the only victim of the shooting who has been identified by name.

Who was the shooter in Iowa?

Authorities identified the shooter, who was found dead at the scene, as Dylan Butler, 17, but have so far provided no information about a possible motive.

Authorities said Butler had a pump-action shotgun and a small-calibre handgun.

Butler is believed to have shot himself. “Officers immediately attempted to locate the source of the threat and quickly found what appeared to be the shooter with a self-inflicted gunshot wound,” Mitch Mortvedt, assistant director of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation told reporters

Butler’s mother, alongside two of his friends, told The Associated Press that he was a quiet person who had been bullied for years.

Where in Iowa did the shooting take place?

Perry is about 65km (40 miles) northwest of Des Moines, on the edge of the state capital’s metropolitan area.

It is home to a relatively diverse population of about 8,000 people living in low-slung, single-storey homes spread among trees now shorn of their leaves by winter. Census figures show 31 percent of Perry’s residents are Hispanic. This compares with fewer than 7 percent across the state.

The high school and middle school are connected, sitting on the east edge of the town.

How have US Republicans reacted to the Iowa shooting?

This shooting comes a week before the Iowa caucuses, a series of local meetings held throughout the state during which Republicans usually indicate their preference for a presidential nominee to represent the party in the November presidential election.

The incident sparked responses and prayers from Republican candidates but no policy proposals have emerged. Guns are likely to once again be a hot topic of debate during this election cycle, with little legislative action expected.

Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy posted a video on X of him meeting two parents whose daughter was at Perry’s nearby elementary school that day.

“Our purpose here was to pray and reflect, to make sure something like this never happens again,” Ramaswamy said.

Republican candidate Nikki Haley also extended her sympathies on X. “My heart aches for the victims of Perry, Iowa and the entire community,” she wrote.