Oregon school shooting hero opens up about survivors guilt

The tragic shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Oregon earlier this month left a devastating impact after a 16-year-old former student opened fire, killing three young boys and a teacher before being stopped by a bystander, Kaylub Giamanco.

In an interview with Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) on Friday, Giamanco expressed deep anguish, stating that he wants to apologize to the parents for not being able to save their babies. He credited a teacher who bravely fought the attacker with giving him the crucial opportunity to intervene without losing his own life.

Police reported that six people were shot inside a classroom during the attack. The victims who died included boys aged five, eight, and 11, alongside 25-year-old teacher Megan Lambert, whom her family described as working her dream job and always fighting for underdogs. Another teacher, 54-year-old Becky Drury, was wounded while trying to shut her classroom door.

Giamanco, a carpenter, recalled that his day began routinely with breakfast and preparing packed lunches because it was school picture day. Deciding to return home to eat with his wife instead of his workplace brought him past the school just as the attack unfolded. After witnessing the gunman shoot at a pickup truck and head toward the building, Giamanco retrieved his handgun and called emergency services.

"I relive, I see faces, I hear voices, I hear screams."

Kaylub Giamanco

Crawling through a shattered window, Giamanco reached the classroom where a teacher was locked in a struggle with the gunman. He opened the door, fired at the suspect, and later placed his weapon on the ground and raised his hands as police arrived.