The Broward County Sheriff has spoken out about “hero” coach Aaron Feis, calling him, “one of the greatest people I knew.”
“I coached with him,” Sheriff Scott Israel revealed in a press conference.
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Sheriff Israel then added that as a coach “you’ll get 2000 kids” who come through under your guidance, and that when Feis was killed, “he did it protecting others…that’s who Aaron Feis was.”
As the Sheriff mention, Feis threw himself in front of students to shield them from gunfire during a the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Wednesday.
#DigitalUpdate: ‘He Was One Of The Greatest People I Knew’: @browardsheriff Scott Israel on hero coach #AaronFeis pic.twitter.com/wtqUWUzg4s
— CBS4 Miami (@CBSMiami) February 15, 2018
Feis was admitted to the hospital in critical condition, but passed away from the injuries he sustained. Many people have taken to honoring the fallen hero with messages of support and sympathy.
“Some heroes wear Gatorade towels over their shoulders. Aaron Feis sacrificed his body for his students in the Florida school shooting,” wrote one person.
Another user wrote that Feis “is the definition of an American Hero. We need more people in this crazy world like him.”
My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Aaron Feis, a Real Hero, who stood up and gave his life for his students amid a massacre. The Football and Big Guy communities salute you Coach Feis. He deserves everyone to hear his story. pic.twitter.com/fhpLl2kJ7a
— The Big Guy (@BigGuy_Probs) February 15, 2018
Following the Florida high school shooting on Wednesday afternoon, authorities eventually released the identity of the shooter as Nikolaus Cruz.
Cruz is reportedly a former student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, according to the Miami Herald. According to posts on a since-deleted Instagram purportedly belonging to Cruz, he has a penchant for knives and guns.
Per reports prior to Cruz being identified, the shooter was described to CNN news affiliate, WSVN, as wearing a black hat, a maroon or burgundy colored shirt and black pants. He was last seen on the west side of a three-story building on campus.
The father of a student at the high school said the suspect pulled a fire alarm and opened fire as students left their classrooms and went into the hallway, WKBN reports.
A student at the school told reporters, “We all thought it was a fire drill because we had one previously today. And we thought it was, so no one was that nervous, but then word started going around that it was shots and not just, like, something else, everyone just started running towards the canal.”
Not long after law enforcement arrived on scene, the Broward county school board begin tweeting information about the shooting.
“Today, close to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School’s dismissal, students and staff heard what sounded like gunfire. The school immediately went on lockdown but is now dismissing students. We are receiving reports of possible multiple injuries. Law enforcement is on site,” they explained in their first tweet.
“Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is now dismissing students. We are receiving reports of possible multiple injuries. Law enforcement and the District’s Special Investigative Unit are currently on site. The District will provide updates as more information becomes available,” a subsequent tweet read.
