Tumbler Ridge, B.C., students shouldn’t expect a return to site of killings: district
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TUMBLER RIDGE – The superintendent of the Peace River South school district says the expectation is that students will not be returning to the high school where six people were killed and dozens more were hurt.
A letter sent to families from Christy Fennell on Friday says further plans will be shared in the next week that “prioritizes emotional and physical safety through a trauma informed lens.”
The letter says that they know some families want the stability of school routines, while others may not feel ready.
It says the district’s priority remains supporting the deeply impacted community.
The letter tells parents to talk to their children about healthy coping strategies and “how they can support themselves and others with kindness.”
Nine people, including the shooter, died at the school and at the killer’s home in the small community on Tuesday.
B.C. Premier David Eby promised at a vigil on Friday night that students would have a safe space to learn when classes resumed.
Police have said that they expected to be finished their investigation this weekend at the home where 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar killed her mother and brother.
However, they said the forensic work would take much longer at the school.
RCMP have said the shooter killed herself as officers arrived at the school.
Eby told the crowd that he knew there was anxiety from some of the students about one day having to go back to the school.
He said they won’t be forced to attend that school again, when or if it should reopen.
“We will provide a safe place for you to go to school,” the premier said.
Eby also promised that the new school will still feature a fish and a lizard that were in Mark Deeley’s science class, which drew chuckles from the sombre crowd.
“(Deeley) says it’s got to be different, but it also needs to be familiar,” Eby said of the future school.
“Things are going to be different, but there are going to be things that are familiar, and one of those things is the courage and the bravery and the amazing kids, the students, the young adults, the people of Tumbler Ridge.”
Friday’s vigil, which also featured speeches from Prime Minister Mark Carney, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and Gov. Gen. Mary Simon, saw more than a thousand people attend to pay their respects.
On the steps of the town hall people placed candles, photos, teddy bears and other items in honour of those who were killed.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 14, 2026.