Injured Apalachee students face physical, emotional struggles
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WINDER, Ga. - Ronaldo Vega, 14, was hit several times in the arm and leg during Wednesday’s deadly shooting at Apalachee High School.
Melany Garcia, 15, was shot in the shoulder and suffered a broken bone.
Vega returned to the school after being released from the hospital to pray for those who didn’t make it, but Garcia faces a longer road to recovery.
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Two 14-year-old students, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, were killed. Teachers Christina Irimie, 53, and Richard Aspinwall, 39, also died.
Vega said he couldn’t believe his eyes as gunshots hailed into his classroom.
“He shot the first one, and then that’s when I immediately ducked down to cover myself,” he said. “He looked at me, but I was lucky enough that he didn’t point the gun at me.”
Bullets and blood sprayed across the floor, Vega said. When the shooter walked back out into the hall, Vega closed the door, which locks by itself, behind him.
“I (didn’t) want nothing more to happen. Because if it did happen, I wouldn’t be here right now,” he said.
Only entering the second month of his freshman year, Vega is still in shock — but he’s thankful to be alive.
“Pray for your kids that go to school, because you never know what will happen,” he said.
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Melany Garcia, 15, is one of the other students shot at Apalachee High School on Wednesday. She’s currently recovering at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
Garcia was shot in the shoulder and suffered a broken bone.
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Garcia has undergone two surgeries but is expected to recover.
“Melany’s life is going to be forever changed. Her childhood has been stripped from her. She’s a normal young teen who loves to be with friends, play soccer, and spend time with family, and none of those hobbies will ever be the same now,” family friend Hannah Nemeth said in an online statement. “She has three other precious siblings and a loving mother and father who are absolutely devastated.”
Colt Gray, a 14-year-old student at the school, has been identified as the shooting suspect. He faces four counts of felony murder and will soon see more charges, Barrow County District Attorney Brad Smith announced on Friday.
Gray’s father, Colin Gray, was also taken into custody on four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children. Authorities believe he gave his son the semi-automatic AR-15-style rifle that was allegedly used in the shooting.
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