Terrified Michigan State Students Share Terrifying Moments As They Fled For Their Lives And Barricaded Themselves

Terrified Michigan State University students tell how they barricaded themselves in their dormitories before being evacuated by police – when a gunman stormed the campus, killing at least three

Campus staff and students barricaded themselves in their dormitories and college buildings with a gunman roaming free, sparking fear and panic
Some of those on campus called CNN while on lockdown
Those leaving the campus turned on police scanners to find out what was going on, but it quickly became clear that this was not a false alarm

By James Gordon for

Published: 04:50 GMT, 14 February 2023 | Updated: 05:07 GMT, 14 February 2023

Terrified staff and students took to the airwaves Monday night as they barricaded themselves in their dormitories and other university buildings as a gunman terrorized the campus.

College student Gabe Turner was taking a chemistry quiz when he received news of a shooting on his cell phone.

“Shortly after receiving the alarm, I turned on the police radar in our area. About ten minutes after me, we got a report that the shooter had wandered into an area block just once from my location. That really scared us,” Turner explained.

“We barricaded the door. We emerged through the windows trying to make sure he didn’t come towards us. It’s not the best situation in our situation, but five minutes later the entire building was evacuated. The dining room area. The police came to make sure everyone was okay.’

Michigan State University students react during an active shooter situation on campus February 13, 2023 in Lansing, Michigan

Michigan State University students hug during an active shooter situation on campus

Gabe Treutle took a chemistry test on campus and barricaded himself in a building

Another student, Connor Anderson, also explained what happened while he was having dinner when shots rang out nearby

“I was in the cafeteria on the second floor. I got a text from someone saying there was a shooting. It was across campus. Basically we’re in lockdown, everything was quiet, everyone was listening to police reports,” Anderson explained.

“We heard that the shooter is approaching the location. I still thought we were safe. At some point we started barricading the doors. The task force and the cops came in and told us to leave the cafeteria. We stormed down the stairs. We had our hands up. And we had to go to the nearest bus stop. Your shots got closer and we got stranded by a parking garage.’

Another student was at a basketball game when the lights went out and the doors locked as the place went into lockdown

Sean Turner, a professor of National Security Communication at Michigan State University, was on campus when the shooting broke out

Elsewhere, Michigan State University professor of National Security Communication Sean Turner was on campus when the shooting broke out just after 8 p.m.

“Everyone on campus got a notification on our phone that really surprised us. It indicated there was an active gunman on campus, shots were being fired, and let us know the campus was transitioning to emergency shelter status,” Turner explained.

“This alert came out and for those of us that were off campus, they were off campus and turned on the police scanner to find out what was going on. To be honest, I mean, we assume this could be a situation where someone heard something and thought shots had been fired, but it became apparent very quickly that this was turning into a real one on campus tragedy was playing out,” Turner said.

“I came home straight away, I had people in my building on campus working late into the night. For most of us in leadership positions here on campus, we went with a motive to make sure not only our students but also our staff, all of our staff are safe in the building that they were in on campus. ‘

This is an evolving message – more to come…