Authorities report that a former student allegedly stabbed three staff members at a special needs school in California and placed two bombs in the vicinity on Monday morning.
The individual, who is no longer a student, is accused of attacking the staff members at Switzer Learning Center, a private institution in Torrance that serves neurodivergent students from kindergarten through 12th grade, around 8:15 a.m., according to a statement from the Torrance Police Department.
He was detained after attempting to stab a fourth staff member and escaping the location, police stated.
While in custody, the former student informed authorities about the placement of two pipe bombs near the school at the intersection of 208th Street and Amapola Avenue.
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department’s bomb squad rushed to the scene and identified the two devices as “incendiary,” according to law enforcement.
Authorities safely detonated both devices on-site; reported the Los Angeles Times. The vicinity was declared safe after residents were advised to avoid the area.
Two staff members were transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, while a third was treated at the scene, officials added.
Details regarding the suspect, as well as a motive for the attack, remain unclear.
The assailant — whose name has not been released — is currently held by police.
Mom Cristina Morales, 54, expressed her concerns while waiting for her 18-year-old son with autism to be released from the school.
“I’m anxious,” she remarked. “My son tends to get easily stressed.”
Morales stated she was dropping off her other son at school when she received a call from her daughter about the stabbing at her son’s school.
“She informed me that a student had brought a knife and intended to harm others,” she recounted. “My son ran and hid.”
Morales shared that her son was in the cafeteria, close to the main office, when he heard a commotion and saw someone being attacked.
After witnessing the violence, he urged seven other students to take cover in a storage room, barricading the door with a chair.
The terrified students also used black trash bags to conceal themselves, the anxious mother reported.
The incident is still under investigation.
