A large-scale manhunt continued into Sunday after a gunman killed two students and wounded nine others in a shooting at Brown University, jolting one of America’s most prestigious campuses and forcing parts of Providence, Rhode Island, into lockdown.
The attack unfolded shortly after 4 p.m. on Saturday inside a first-floor classroom at the university’s engineering complex, where students were gathered for an exam review session. Authorities said the suspect opened fire and then fled the building on foot. He remains at large.
Brown officials ordered an immediate shelter-in-place directive as police swept the campus and surrounding neighborhoods. Students in several buildings were told to remain inside until officers could escort them to safety. By evening, officials said most of the injured were hospitalized in critical but stable condition.
“This is a day we hoped would never come,” Brown President Christina Paxson said in a statement. “Our community is grieving.”
Investigators have released few details about the suspect, describing him only as a man dressed in black, possibly wearing a mask. Surveillance footage shows him leaving the building, but his face is not visible. Police have not identified a motive or confirmed whether he has any connection to the university. The weapon used has not been recovered.
Witness accounts painted a scene of sudden chaos. Rachel Friedberg, an economics professor, said her teaching assistant was leading a review session when the shooter entered the room, shouted something indistinct, and began firing. Students scrambled down the stadium-style seating, some trying to hide, others attempting to escape.
Police later cleared the building but found no suspect. Additional armed officers were deployed across the area as authorities expanded the search.
The impact rippled well beyond campus. Restaurants and businesses near Brown locked their doors, with staff and patrons sheltering inside. “There are flashing lights everywhere,” said Steph Machado, a reporter for the Boston Globe.
Mari Camara, a 20-year-old student, told the Associated Press she ran into a restaurant after leaving the library and hid there for hours. “Everyone is shocked and terrified,” she said.
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University exams scheduled for Saturday were canceled. State and federal officials issued statements of condolence, including President Donald Trump, who called the shooting “a terrible thing,” and Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee, who described it as an “unthinkable tragedy.”
Brown, founded in 1764 and part of the Ivy League, enrolls more than 11,000 students. The shooting adds to a grim national tally: at least 389 mass shootings in the United States this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
As investigators continue their search, the campus remains suspended between grief and fear, waiting for answers — and for the manhunt to end.