Graz, Austria – Austria stood still on Wednesday morning. At exactly 10:00, the country observed a minute’s silence. It was a quiet tribute to the ten lives lost in a brutal school shooting in the city of Graz an attack that has shaken this Alpine nation to its core.
The suspect, a 21-year-old former student, stormed into Dreierschützengasse secondary school on Tuesday morning armed with a pistol and a shotgun. Within minutes, nine students and staff were dead. A tenth victim later died in hospital. Twelve others were injured.
Police say the gunman, who legally owned both weapons, took his own life inside a school bathroom shortly after the rampage. A “farewell letter” and an inoperable pipe bomb were later discovered in his flat, but a clear motive remains unknown.
“It was like nothing we’ve ever experienced,” said Franz, a local resident who lives across from the school. “Thirty or forty shots it just didn’t stop. My wife thought someone was setting off fireworks. But this was different. Too many shots. Too fast.”
For many here, the violence feels surreal. Austria has strict gun laws, and mass shootings are rare. “We’re not America,” one Graz journalist said. “This isn’t the kind of place where children fear for their lives at school.”
A Nation Grieves
By Tuesday evening, Graz’s main square had become a candlelit shrine. Thousands of residents many of them teenagers gathered silently, some holding hands, others weeping. Volunteers arranged candles at the base of the Archduke Johann fountain. The normally lively square glowed with quiet grief.
Felix Platzer, one of many who came to pay respects, said the vigil was about unity. “Even if you didn’t know them, you feel it. It’s something that affects all of us. Grieving together helps.”
Tores, a local woman, described the moment she learned a family friend was among the dead. “He was just 17. I called the family as soon as I heard, hoping for good news. But by midday, they confirmed the worst.”
Chancellor Christian Stocker called it “a dark day in our country’s history” and declared three days of national mourning. Austrian flags were lowered to half-mast. “A school should be a place of safety,” he said. “A place for learning, for hope. That was shattered.”
Shock and Questions
Interior Minister Gerhard Karner confirmed the suspect was not known to police. He had failed to graduate from the school, and acted alone. Authorities are investigating whether he had a history of mental illness.
Outside a local blood donation centre on Tuesday afternoon, long lines formed. Many young people came, hoping to help. “I just needed to do something,” said 30-year-old Johanna. “I felt helpless.”
Stephanie Koenig, 25, stood behind her in line. “This is a hard day for Graz. Giving blood feels like the only thing we can do.”
Witness accounts from inside the school paint a picture of chaos and fear. “We saw a boy at a window it looked like he was going to jump,” Franz said. “He went back inside. We were terrified for them.”
Austrian tactical police stormed the building shortly after the shooting began. They cleared the school room by room. All students and teachers were evacuated safely, though not all escaped harm.
The school will remain closed until further notice.
Europe Responds
European Commission Vice-President Kaja Kallas was among many officials to express sorrow. “Every child should feel safe at school,” she wrote online. “No one should fear violence in a classroom.”
The tragedy has drawn comparisons to past attacks. In 2020, a jihadist gunman killed four people in Vienna. But this is the worst school-related violence in Austria’s recent memory.
In the days to come, there will be debates about school security, mental health, and how someone so young gained access to deadly weapons. But for now, Austria mourns.
At the vigil, many stood in silence well into the night. One student whispered to a friend, “We just want to feel safe again.”
The candles flickered on.
