Providence, R.I. — What was meant to be a routine Saturday on campus, with students deep in finals week, turned into a scene of terror and heartbreak at Brown University. Around 4:05 p.m. Saturday, a gunman dressed entirely in black opened fire near the Barus & Holley Engineering and Physics building, leaving two people dead and eight others wounded in what officials are calling a mass shooting.
The panic began just after mid‑afternoon exams had started. Students studying in classrooms and labs heard startling pops they couldn’t immediately place. At first, some thought it was construction or loud equipment from the university’s woodshop — until those pops turned into something far more sinister. Sophia Holman, a student who had been looking for a study room in the engineering building, told CNN she heard the shots and then saw someone sprinting past her. She ran without looking back and called police once she’d reached a safer block away.
Officers from Brown University’s Department of Public Safety and the Providence Police Department responded within minutes, issuing urgent alerts telling students and staff to “lock doors, silence phones and stay hidden” as they worked to secure the campus. Brown’s emergency notification system also broadcast a shelter‑in‑place order that stretched across much of campus and surrounding neighborhoods, urging everyone to keep all doors locked and remain inside.
At a later press briefing, Providence Police Deputy Chief Timothy O’Hara confirmed the suspect had fled the scene. Officials described him only as a male in black clothing who was last seen exiting the building on the Hope Street side of campus. There is no suspect in custody, and a massive manhunt involving local and federal law enforcement — including the FBI and ATF — continues as night falls on Providence.
The toll was devastating. When first responders arrived, two victims were already dead, and eight others were rushed to Rhode Island Hospital, many in critical but stable condition. Providence Mayor Brett Smiley reminded the public that details were still coming in and that the numbers could change, but he offered a sobering portrait of the afternoon’s violence.
Students sheltering in place described scenes of fear and confusion as officers swept building to building. Some huddled in classrooms, others called loved ones on shaky cell signals. In the midst of the chaos, there was also a palpable trust in the rapid response of police and medical crews — a small comfort amid an overwhelming situation.
Brown University administration canceled all activities for the evening and continues to coordinate with public safety officials as the community waits for news about the victims and the ongoing investigation. Final exams, once scheduled for that building on a quiet Saturday, now stand overshadowed by this act of violence that has shaken one of the nation’s oldest and most respected campuses.
