The small northern town of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, is grappling with heartbreak after one of Canada\u2019s deadliest school attacks in decades. The BC Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have confirmed the identities of the victims from the February 10, 2026, mass shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, as the community mourns the nine lives lost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Among the victims was 12-year-old Kylie May Smith, remembered by family as a bright, compassionate girl taken far too soon. Her aunt, Shanon Dycke, spoke publicly about the family\u2019s devastation. Funds raised in Kylie\u2019s memory are intended to support her mother, Desirae Smith, her brother Ethan, and other relatives with funeral expenses and travel costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Investigators have identified 18-year-old Jesse van Rootselaar as the shooter. According to RCMP Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald, van Rootselaar was found deceased inside the school, believed to have inflicted the fatal injury himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Authorities also confirmed two additional victims at a residence linked to the suspect\u2014his mother and 11-year-old stepbrother. Their names have been withheld at the family\u2019s request.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside the school, the tragedy claimed the life of a teacher and several students. Some victims were found in the library, others in a stairwell. The total death toll stands at nine victims, not including the shooter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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A confirmed motive has not been released, and the investigation remains active. Law enforcement continues to review digital evidence, witness accounts, and forensic findings to build a clearer picture of what happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deputy Commissioner McDonald offered condolences on behalf of the RCMP, noting the immense impact on families, first responders, and the broader Tumbler Ridge community. Counseling services and crisis response teams are available to students and residents as the town begins the long process of healing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Outside the school, memorials and vigils have sprung up, with residents coming together to honor Kylie and the other victims. The RCMP stressed that updates will be shared as new information emerges while urging respect for the families\u2019 privacy during this time of profound grief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\ud83d\udcac Our hearts are with Tumbler Ridge. Share your messages of support and remembrance for the victims in the comments below.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The small northern town of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, is grappling with heartbreak after one of Canada\u2019s deadliest school attacks…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":10242,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10241"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10241\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10244,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10241\/revisions\/10244"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/sirbenet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}