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Deadly School Shooting North of Seattle; News Conference on School Shooting; New York Hatchet Attack; Doctor with Ebola Isolated at NYC Hospital

Aired October 24, 2014 - 17:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

WOLF BLITZER, HOST: Happening now, breaking news.

Deadly school shooting -- fear and chaos at a high school near Seattle, as a gunman opens fire, sending hundreds fleeing. There are casualties. We have the latest details.

Ebola in New York City -- a doctor is in isolation after testing positive for the deadly virus. His fiancee and friends under quarantine. Urgent efforts are now underway to trace other contacts.

Hatchet terror attack -- a man swinging a blade wounds two police officers before others shoot him dead. Why police now say it was the act of a self-radicalized extremist.

Remains identified -- forensic tests show the remains found in rural Virginia are, in fact, those of the missing student, Hannah Graham.

I'm Wolf Blitzer.

You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN breaking news.

BLITZER: And we're following multiple breaking stories this hour. Hundreds of students running in fear from a school under siege. This time, in Marysville, Washington State, north of Seattle, a shooter opening fire in a high school cafeteria there, killing one person and wounding others before turning the gun on himself.

We have new information coming into THE SITUATION ROOM right now.

And we're following the Ebola scare in America's biggest city. A doctor who tested positive for the deadly disease is now in isolation in a New York City hospital. His fiancee and two friends are quarantined. And a medical SWAT team is deployed amid urgent efforts to track down his possible contacts.

Our correspondents and analysts and newsmakers, they're all standing by with full coverage.

Let's begin with the latest on the school shooting.

CNN's Tom Foreman is standing by with that -- Tom.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Wolf.

We're piecing together all of this information as well as we can at this hour, what's happened in the school.

Here's what we're being told about the alleged gunman by students and eyewitnesses. Jaylen Fryberg was a freshman, a football player and part of the homecoming court. He was a Native American. Classmates say he was into hunting. He was friendly and he was popular.

And this is what we know, at this point, about the timeline of what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FOREMAN (voice-over): Shortly after 10:30 a.m., as students gathered in the cafeteria for lunch, one witness says a young man rose from a table, pulled a small pistol from his pocket and began firing.

AUSTIN TAYLOR, STUDENT: I saw three kids just fall from the table like they were falling to the ground dead. I jumped under the table as fast as I could. And when it stopped, I looked back up and I saw he was trying to reload his gun. And when that happened, I just ran in the opposite direction and then I was out of there as fast as I could.

FOREMAN: That witness said he knew the young man and he looked calm, with a blank stare throughout.

Students scattered. Many in the rest of the building say they thought a fire drill was underway and many ran outside. In the hallways, teachers started herding others into classrooms and ordering a lockdown. At some point, someone inside placed a 911 call. And by 10:40, police were swarming the building, going room to room, placing tape over the doors of those they had secured so they would know they had already been checked. And in that process, they discovered the alleged gunman, by noon officially saying he was dead, apparently having shot himself.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

FOREMAN: Officials appear confident that there was only one gunman. But at this hour, they continue going through this school room by room by room, checking to make sure that everyone is accounted for. And experience tells us, Wolf, that that process will go on for many hours before they're confident that everyone is out and everyone is secured.

BLITZER: And that's simply out of a matter of just being overly cautious.

FOREMAN: This is what they have to do. You have a big school like this and this is a large school by the standards of any city in this country. There are a lot of rooms, a lot of area on the campus. They have to look for evidence. They have to look for people who may still be hiding. That's been known to happen for hours, because people are terrified by this. And, of course, to see if anybody else might have been hurt somewhere that they're just unaware of. BLITZER: Well, it's just smart -- a smart thing to do.

Tom Foreman, thanks very much.

We're also getting more information on the deadly school shooting.

Let's bring in our justice reporter, Evan Perez.

What are you learning -- Evan?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, we know that the authorities now are trying to trace the handgun that was recovered at the scene and that was believed used by the shooter. It's a .40 caliber Baretta handgun. And the ATF is now doing a trace to try to determine where he this from.

Now, this is an area where a lot of people have guns, so it's not sure -- it's not clear whether he had to go anywhere other than perhaps his own home to get this -- to get this firearm. But we know from witnesses he just came into this -- into this cafeteria and sat there for a little while and then started shooting, some of them his own friends -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And I take it, under -- this is a situation where FBI, federal officials, they are being brought in for assistance in dealing with this kind of a crime?

PEREZ: That's right, Wolf. I mean they have a lot of experience on these types of shootings. The FBI is there to try to help with some of the behavioral analysis, to try to look at some of the social media postings of this young man. We know from looking at some of the postings, that he seemed to be very upset in the last few weeks, perhaps about his girlfriend. He seemed to be upset with some of his own friends.

So there's something that was -- that appeared to be triggering this, perhaps was building for some weeks. And that's something that the FBI will definitely be focusing on to try to see if there's anything they can learn to try to prevent these types of things from happening again.

BLITZER: Which is also smart.

Thanks very much, Evan Perez.

And joining us -- joining us on the phone right now, Sergeant Ryan Dalberg.

He's a spokesman for the Everett, Washington Police.

Sergeant, thanks very much for joining us.

Let's just review some of the facts as we know them right now. And I know maybe this is still a fluid situation.

First of all, how many people were shot? SGT. RYAN DALBERG, EVERETT, WASHINGTON POLICE: I'm sorry you cut out on me there, Wolf.

BLITZER: Yes, Sergeant, how many people were shot?

DALBERG: We can confirm six injured, two of those being deceased and the other four injured.

BLITZER: And one of the deceased being the shooter himself?

DALBERG: Correct.

BLITZER: And you -- and we have confirmed this is a freshman, Jaylen Fryberg, is that right?

DALBERG: I don't have official confirmation on the shooter's identity. That's coming through social media.

BLITZER: Do we know if all of those -- all of those who were shot, one student shot by -- allegedly by Fryberg and killed, four others and injured, they were all students, right?

DALBERG: I don't know. I can't confirm whether a teacher was shot or not. I don't know.

BLITZER: All right. And do you know if they were shot at random or was this a deliberate -- were they targeted?

DALBERG: I don't know if anybody was specifically targeted or if it was random. We're still trying to piece all those details together.

BLITZER: And what can you tell us, without mentioning his name, since you obviously don't want to mention his name, because we're getting all sorts of information about the shooter, a homecoming king, if you will, that was active on the football team, a Native American.

Can you tell us anything about him, about a possible motive, for example?

DALBERG: No, unfortunately right now, I do not know a motive. We are -- we're trying to piece that together. He is an active student -- or was an active student at the Marysville-Pilchuck High School. And at this point, we're still searching for a motive ourselves.

BLITZER: And we do -- you can confirm that the shooter put the gun to his head and killed himself?

DALBERG: I cannot confirm that. I don't know.

BLITZER: You don't know.

Is it possible that somebody else killed him, is that what you're saying?

DALBERG: I don't know, sir. I mean -- I have not received any of those type of details one way or the other. BLITZER: We're getting some pictures in from the school. Police still going in there.

What is going on there now?

Is there an active search, possibly for someone else?

DALBERG: Yes. Basically, a back search is standard procedure. Our initial teams will go in and if there is a threat, they'll address that threat. And then once that's taken care of, then they'll move to be -- to escorting any injured people out of the building.

Once that's completed, we're going to -- our teams will go back slow and methodical and do a very, very thorough and careful search just to make sure that the building is safe.

BLITZER: And to make sure that no one is -- out of fear -- is still hiding there in a closet or in a room someplace, right?

DALBERG: That's correct, sir.

BLITZER: And this is being done out of an abundance of caution, as they say?

DALBERG: Correct. Correct.

BLITZER: There's no hard evidence that there may be someone at large, another shooter, another suspect at large, right?

DALBERG: That's correct. Yes. We -- we take all the precautions we can to make sure everyone is safe.

BLITZER: And then let me get back to the motive for a second. I assume you're going through social media, the comments by this alleged shooter.

Can you share anything with us on that?

DALBERG: What I can share is that our Snohomish County mutual investigative team is on board. They've been called in. That's a team of special investigators that will be conducting those types of inquiries. And it's a team that all agencies in this area put together or contribute to. And they have specialized training in homicide and serious event investigations.

BLITZER: We're told by sources that federal law enforcement is now tracing a Baretta .40 caliber handgun.

Is that the weapon that was used?

DALBERG: I don't have any information on what type of firearm was used in this incident, I'm sorry.

BLITZER: And you have no idea where the shooter got the gun?

DALBERG: None at all, sorry. BLITZER: What -- is there anything else you can share with our viewers, Sergeant Dalberg?

DALBERG: Not at this point. I know Commander Lamoureux is going to be holding an additional press conference probably in about 20 minutes. And hopefully, he'll be able to add a little bit more. He was just up at the scene, I don't know, about 20 minutes or so ago. So he'll be addressing the media at about, what is it, 1:30 our time...

BLITZER: You mean...

DALBERG: -- 2:30 your time.

BLITZER: -- 2:30 your time. That would be 5:30 here on the East Coast, in about 20 minutes or so from now.

DALBERG: Yes.

BLITZER: OK. Sergeant Ryan Dalberg with the Everett Police. We'll stay in close touch with you. We'll, of course, cover the news conference with the police chief at the bottom of the hour.

Tom Fuentes is here with us, a former FBI assistant director, our CNN law enforcement analyst.

What do you make of what's going on right now?

TOM FUENTES, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, you know, it's another one of these mysteries, really.

What was going on in his head to make him decide to go to that school?

These types of issues in somebody's brain usually brew for a while. And each thing that they think they were wronged or disrespected adds on top of another on top of another. And finally, they decide to take action.

Obviously, he planned this. He brought the weapon hidden in a backpack to school, walked around the school all day. And from what earlier witnesses said, it sounded like at the cafeteria, he went specifically to the people that he initially shot, went up to them from behind, shot each of them in the back or the back of the head, as if he had been stalking them.

So -- and they were identified as friends of his. So we don't know what he was thinking or why or what kind of delusion he had, as far as what people thought of him or what they were doing to him to cause him to believe that he had to take this action against them.

BLITZER: And so based on these initial -- and let's repeat the word initial -- eyewitness accounts, because this could change, he didn't just randomly start shooting at some people, he deliberately targeted individuals.

FUENTES: Yes, this is from someone who knew him, said he knew that these individuals were friends of his. He knew them to be close to him and that it appeared to him when he came into that cafeteria, he went to the victims, picked them out and shot them, that it wasn't just that he was wildly shooting at anybody that went by.

BLITZER: Yes. It was a very -- a very weird story, because normally in a situation like this, the shooter is disgruntled, angry, no friends, a loner, all that kind of stuff. In this particular case, this individual is described as someone who is popular, a football player, homecoming king, a freshman and all of a sudden, this happens.

We're going to get some more information.

I want you to stand by.

Tom Fuentes.

We're going to hear from a witness an account of the deadly school shooting just north of Seattle, Washington and also speak with the Washington Congressman, Jim McDermott.

Plus, the Ebola scare in New York City -- a doctor is now in isolation after testing positive. His fiancee and two friends are in quarantine. Authorities are now scrambling to locate others he may have contacted.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're following the breaking news, a deadly school shooting just north of Seattle, Washington. Law enforcement officials telling CNN, a gunman opened fire at the Marysville-Pilchuck High School, shooting five people before turning the gun on himself. We're told the gunman and one of the people he shot are dead. Three of the injured students have head wounds, and a fourth was shot in the jaw. Fellow students, including witnesses, identify the gunman as Jaylen Fryberg, a freshman and Native American.

Moments ago, a student who was in the cafeteria when the shooting started described what he saw.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AUSTIN TAYLOR, SCHOOL SHOOTING WITNESS: It was just a big group of kids. The whole table was filled up. Big round table right next to the door from the cafeteria. And I was sitting at the table right next to the round table. And I was just eating my food. I'd just got done eating my food.

And he was quiet. He was just sitting there. Everyone was talking. All of a sudden, I see him stand up, pull something out of his pocket. And at first, I thought it was just someone making a really loud noise with, like, a bag, like a big, loud pop. I heard four more after that, and I saw three kids just fall from the table, like they were falling to the ground dead.

BLITZER: The student says he jumped under the table, managed to run out of the cafeteria when the gunman stopped to either reload or that gun jammed.

Joining us now here in THE SITUATION ROOM, Congressman Jim McDermott of Washington state.

Congressman, what are you hearing? What are your folks there telling you about what happened at that high school?

REP. JIM MCDERMOTT (D), WASHINGTON STATE: Well, I'm really only privileged to know what's coming on the official media. I don't have any information from law enforcement people or the FBI or anybody else. I know what you know.

BLITZER: Tell us about this area. You know the area well. Tell us about the high school, what kind of people live in that area.

MCDERMOTT: Well, you know, it's not a stereotypical place you'd think something like this might happen. You might think it would happen in an inner-city school, something like that. This is an urban, rural area, lower middle class, middle class people living out there. It is not an area with lots of urban violence that you might be accustomed to in other places. It is -- it's surprising.

And this youngster does not fit the stereotype. Again, he seems to have been somebody who was popular, got along well, was doing well in school, well in athletics and so forth.

So obviously, there's a whole story here we don't yet know. You have to feel sorry for not only his family and the family of the other children who were injured. But the situation is hard for anybody to get their head around, because you would never think it would happen at Marysville-Pilchuck school. I mean, you might think in Chicago or someplace like that, maybe. But not out here.

BLITZER: A lot of schools nowadays, an increasing number, as you know, Congressman, they have metal detectors. When the kids, the teachers, they go into those schools, they go through metal detectors. Do you know if this high school had metal detectors at the door?

MCDERMOTT: I would -- I only can guess. And my guess would be they do not.

It's just simply not a place where people's minds are tuned to that as a real threat to their daily existence. Everybody thinks that kind of thing is going to happen somewhere else. And this certainly would have been one of those places where you people that move out from Seattle and say, "Well, I want to get out of the inner city, I want to get out of the tumult of living in urban life," it's going to be quiet out here. And that's really the nature of the area this occurred in. That's what makes it kind of hard to -- it makes it very hard to understand.

BLITZER: As you could imagine, I'm sure this is going to revive the debate in the United States about the availability of guns. What's the situation over there in Washington state where you are? How easy is it to get guns nowadays, especially if you're a 17-year-old kid? MCDERMOTT: Well, you know, you're bringing up a very interesting

thing. We have actually on the ballot a state initiative to require background checks at gun fairs and the loophole that presently exists in the gun law.

Most people in the state of Washington have given up on the Congress ever doing anything. I was there back in '92 when we had the assault weapon ban after that shooting incident that occurred on a schoolyard in California. There hasn't been anything done in Congress at that point.

People out here, there's lots of guns around. I mean, there's lots of hunters and lots of legal guns, and people don't feel like there's any interest in the Congress to do anything about restricting or requiring gun locks. We've had some proposals made in the state legislature. But they've never been able to get the votes. The NRA controls this area as well as they do the Congress.

BLITZER: All right. Congressman, our deepest condolences to everybody out there near Seattle and Washington state. A horrific, horrific situation unfolding there. Congressman Jim McDermott of -- a Democrat from Washington state. Thanks very much for joining us.

We've got an eyewitness to what happened. Rachel Hykel (ph), a freshman at the high school is joining us.

Rachel, where were you when this was all going down?

RACHEL HYKEL (PH), EYEWITNESS (via phone): I was about 60 feet away from the table he was sitting at.

BLITZER: And what -- if it's not too painful, tell us what you saw.

HYKEL (PH): Well, I was sitting at lunch. I was eating my lunch. And I heard this big bang. And I thought, you know, possibly it was a bag that blew up or a balloon. And so I turned back around and I just minded my own business. And then I heard it about another four or five -- another four times. And I turn around, and I just saw him standing there. And I saw the gun in his hand, and then everyone just ran. So I just ran with everyone, and that's all I saw. I didn't really see much.

BLITZER: Did you -- did you know this was Jaylen Fryberg?

HYKEL (ph): Yes, when I saw him, I was like, oh, my gosh, that's Jaylen. Like, I would have never expected it would have been him out of all people. You know, and it was really heartbreaking for me to see that. I saw him with a gun in his hand shooting.

BLITZER: Did he say anything? Did you hear him say anything at all?

HYKEL (ph): I didn't hear -- all I heard was people screaming, you know, "Run, get out of here, let's go." I didn't hear his voice specifically, no.

BLITZER: What would -- I mean, you knew him. So tell us a little bit about Jaylen Fryberg.

HYKEL (ph): Jaylen Fryberg was a really -- a really nice person. He was a person who was always -- you know, he always liked pleasing people, and he -- you know, he was a people person. He liked -- he really liked his friends. He was athletic, very athletic. He was just a really nice kid and all-around good person.

BLITZER: This must be shocking. Did it look like he was directly aiming at individuals, targeting young students, or was he just shooting randomly? Did you have a sense of that, Rachel?

HYKEL (ph): I didn't specifically see, but it did look like he was pointing the gun in a certain direction.

BLITZER: It did look like that?

HYKEL (ph): Yes.

BLITZER: And then he pointed the gun at himself and killed himself, is that -- did you see that, as well?

HYKEL (ph): No, I was out -- I was outside by then. I didn't see any of that.

BLITZER: And without mentioning anybody's name, because we're not ready to name any of the victims, did you know any of these kids who were either -- one of them we know was killed, the others were injured?

HYKEL (ph): Yes, I did know them.

BLITZER: And these were friends of his or these were acquaintances? Without mentioning any names, what were they like?

HYKEL (ph): They were friends of -- I believe they were friends of his, yes. They were -- I thought personally that they were good friends and good people just like him. They were all very nice people and people who you could always go and talk to. They were open, very open.

BLITZER: We're told he was the homecoming king. Is that right?

HYKEL (ph): Yes, he was the freshman homecoming prince.

BLITZER: Homecoming prince. So what -- tell us what that means in your high school.

HYKEL (ph): That practically means that you're, like, a -- not really a representative. A leader of the freshman class, of your class, and you're a good person with -- people like you. You have -- you're good in class. Teachers like you, your peers like you. You know, you're a person that everyone likes, you know, a good person.

BLITZER: So, Rachel, you must be stunned by this, given his background, that he was well-liked, he was popular, he had a lot of friends. And all of a sudden you're in the cafeteria. You're all having lunch, and then all of a sudden he opens up fire and starts shooting at fellow students who you believe were friends of his. How are you doing, Rachel?

HYKEL (ph): I'm doing all right. It's really hard to know that, you know, when a person who I knew of and I was friends with and that they would do this. It's really heartbreaking. But I know that, you know, it happened, and it will just take time to -- to like -- yes, it will take time.

BLITZER: Take time to heal.

HYKEL (ph): Yes, to heal.

BLITZER: It will take a lot of time. All right. Rachel, good luck to you. Good luck to all your friends, your family there. Thank you very much for sharing your eyewitness account.

Rachel Hykel (ph), a freshman at this high school where a fellow freshman went out there in the cafeteria and started shooting at fellow students and eventually shot and killed himself.

Coming up, we're going to have much more on the deadly school shooting just north of Seattle. We're going to bring you details as we get them.

Also, a New York City doctor in isolation after testing positive for Ebola. His fiancee and friends, they're in quarantine. Authorities now scrambling to trace other possible contacts.

Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're following multiple breaking stories right now. We're standing by for a police news conference on the school shooting near Seattle. Stand by for that.

But look at this. There's breaking news in New York City right now. Police have put -- put on an alert. They have been put on alert against what are called random attacks after four police officers were rushed by a man swinging a hatchet. Two of them were wounded, the other two shot and killed and the attacker.

We're going to have much more on this story coming up but I want to go to Washington state right now. That news conference, the latest on what happened at that school happening right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mayor Jon Nehring, city of Marysville, obviously we're deeply saddened by the tragic events today at Marysville- Pilchuck High School. There;s really no words to describe this type of tragedy. So our priority right now to stand with the families of those that were directly affected from this as well as with the families and the students of everybody at Marysville-Pilchuck High School who went through this tragic event today.

I do want to -- want to thank several folks here. Executive John Lovick has been since the start and representatives from Governor Inslee's office as well as Senator Cantwell, Senator Murray, Congressman Larsen's office as well. The Governor Inslee I believe I mentioned that. Sheriff (INAUDIBLE) has been on site since the beginning. We've received great partnership from the sheriff's office and from all sorts of surrounding communities that have offered their support.

And I also want to say that I've been in close contact throughout the morning and the afternoon with school superintendent Becky Berg who's asked me to read a statement which I will read here in a minute, as well as the chairman and vice chairman of members of the Board of the Tulalip Tribes.

And so we're all working together as a team. Of course our first priority was to get the kids home safely and reunited with their families. We'll try and get you guys information as quickly as we can and I want to thank the Marysville PD doing on outstanding job in taking care of the first priority, which is getting the kids out, and also now responding to what needs to come next.

And I would also like to read from the school superintendent this message that she asked me to send. And she'll be here later. But obviously her priority right now is being with the families and those involved.

On the behalf of the Marysville School District, staff and teachers, I want to extend my thoughts and prayers to the families involved in this tragedy. When something happens to one of our children, it happens to all of us. Student safety is our top priority and we are working closely with local law enforcement in everything involved.

And again that's from Superintendent Becky Berg. So thank you for that. And we'll be continuing to update you as the day goes on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you. We will be coming back at 5:00 and having another update. That will be our next update. We'll have additional folks here to answer other questions or provide information.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Do you have a timeline (INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know what, I'll have to put that together and get that to you at 5:00. I have not -- I have not put together a timeline.

We are not confirming any type of weapon that was used at this time. It's very early in the investigation. We want to make sure we do things right.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you explain how the shooter died?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you confirm (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't have that at this point. I don't have that. Don't have any idea who the female is.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you have the (INAUDIBLE)?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you explain how the shooter died?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, the shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To the?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you tell us the relationship between the shooter and the female victim?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I do not know if there's a relationship.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were all the victims shot in the cafeteria?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I believe that is the case, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is the female victim a student?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you walk through a narrative of what happened in the cafeteria, as far as your understanding?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know what, I don't have real specific details. So it wouldn't be a good idea for me to put those out there at this time. Hopefully we will have another command center review before the 5:00 and we'll see if we can get some of that information.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is happening right now at the scene?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right now, the Snohomish Multiagency Response Team, that's our smart team, is on scene and they have taken over the scene and they are interviewing witnesses at this very time. Approximately 30, students and staff.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is possible. We're not ready to do that right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As far as what happened, can you say anything about the relationship between the students, what may have unfolded or is this a random act?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't have that information. It's too early in the investigation to try and figure out what the relationship was.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you tell us what the student (INAUDIBLE) --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's something I can find out for you at 5:00. There was a school resource officer that was assigned. He was on duty at the time. He is the one that put out the active shooter call that got things rolling.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. Folks, we'll be back -- we'll be back at 5:00. I appreciate it. We'll be back just in a little bit.

BLITZER: All right. So there you have the latest from the mayor and the police chief there. Not a whole lot of information. When they say 5:00. That's 5:00 Pacific, 8:00 p.m. here on the East Coast. That's the next time they'll be briefing the news media on what happened.

A very tragic, sad story. A kid, by all accounts, very popular. The homecoming prince, a member of the football team, someone had a lot of friends at the high school. Apparently goes into the cafeteria today with a handgun, we're told, a Beretta .40 caliber handgun, goes in there and goes up against fellow friends we're told by eyewitnesses and then starts shooting, killing one student, injuring four others.

A horrific, horrific scene before putting that gun to himself and killing himself. A freshman student, Jaylen Fryberg. Described as someone who's pretty popular. So this doesn't fit that normal pattern. Normally loner kids, sad kids, kids who have been bullied. But in this particular case, just the opposite of all of that earlier kind of conjecture.

We'll have much more on this very sad story coming up. But all the day's other breaking news. Stay with us. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're following multiple breaking stories today here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

In New York City, police have been put on alert against what they describe as random attacks after four police officers were rushed by a man swinging a hatchet. Two of them were wounded, the other two shot and killed the attacker. Authorities are now calling it an act of terror.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM BRATTON, NEW YORK POLICE COMMISSIONER: I'm very comfortable it was a terrorist attack, certainly.

JOHN MILLER, NEW YORK POLICE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER: Key part of the ongoing investigation as the police commissioner stated clearly at this point, at this preliminary stage, very early in the investigation, every indicator points to that he was acting alone, self-radicalized, self-directed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Let's get some more on what's going on, this new terror threat. We're joined by the former CIA officer, Valerie Plame, she's -- the author of an important new book called "Burn." It's a spy thriller. There it is, there you see the book jacket right there. Also joining us, our CNN law enforcement analyst, Tom Fuentes, a

former assistant director of the FBI, and our CNN national security analyst Robert Baer as well. A former CIA operative as well.

We've got the FBI here, we got the CIA here. We got a lot of guys.

You know, it's happening, three incidents in the past few days, two in Canada, one in New York, somebody apparently self-radicalized. What's going on here?

ROBERT BAER, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Wolf, I don't think it's a coincidence, all of these victims were in uniform. They were armed. They were victims that ISIS has defined as the enemy. And they've gone out and said, attack the West, the uniformed personnel. And I -- you know, they may not be connected but ISIS is giving so many of its orders over the Internet, and by sermons, and even their coded messages.

So we may -- we might not find cell phone connections or connections between these people. But they are carrying out orders of ISIS. I think it's -- looks that way.

BLITZER: Yes. Because, you know ISIS, they're pretty sophisticated with their video, their social media. And there have been statements that have gone out there, saying, you don't have a gun, use an ax. You don't have an ax, use a car. Do whatever you need to do.

VALERIE PLAME, FORMER CIA OFFICER: Indeed.

BLITZER: To kill the infidels.

PLAME: And their propaganda is really slick. And these are people maybe that are somehow ideologically affiliated with what ISIS is putting out there. Maybe they're not official members but they're taking matters into their own hands. And this is the worst sort of thing that we can look for, this is what we've been warned by senior U.S. officials, that lone wolf attack, because it is very hard to find, prevent, deter.

BLITZER: And even if there are no direct links, no direct contacts with a cell, a sophisticated terror operation, it looks like these individuals could either be inspired or copycats.

TOM FUENTES, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Right. And the victims that they're choosing are the obvious representatives of our government, a soldier in uniform or a police officer in uniform. There's no better victim in their mind than somebody in uniform.

BLITZER: How do you deal with this?

BAER: Well, look, I'm going to say something that's going to be unpopular. And it's that ISIS has been reading Snowden. And --

BLITZER: ISIS has been what?

BAER: Reading Snowden's paper. BLITZER: Edward Snowden.

BAER: The stuff he's leaked about the National Security Agency. And they know to stay off phones, stay off e-mail and the rest of it. They're commuting with mobile Wi-Fi. They can beat the National Security Agency. So we are much worse off today than we were with al Qaeda. And, you know, using data analytics to identify these guys that haven't committed a crime, what do you do? So what they get on site, it's not against the law.

PLAME: But, Bob, can I just ask? Do you -- don't you think that terrorists were fully aware that U.S. intelligence was looking in their -- every nook and cranny before whatever Snowden has put out?

BAER: You know, I'm not sure they knew that all the metadata had been, you know, assembled in one place.

PLAME: Compiled.

BAER: And algorithms and the rest of it. I mean, it was made so obvious. In any case, ISIS is much more sophisticated than al Qaeda. It's a lot harder job. And, you know, what's the FBI is going to do when some guy gets on a site, as I said, and looks something, you know -- you know, looks at these -- I look at the videos, but I'm not guilty of anything. But you have to commit a crime for -- Tom will tell you, for the FBI to do something.

BLITZER: Yes. This is a very worrisome development.

I want all of you to stand by because the story unfortunately is not going away.

We're following multiple breaking stories. We have more details coming in to THE SITUATION ROOM about today's deadly school shooting in Washington state.

Also, Ebola in New York, a doctor is in isolation after testing positive for the deadly virus. His fiancee and friends are under quarantine. There are urgent efforts under way to trace other contacts.

More news right after this.

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BLITZER: The other breaking news we're following, new efforts under way right now to trace the contacts of a New York City doctor who has now tested positive for Ebola. He's in isolation. His fiancee and two friends, they are quarantined. Now the governors of New York and New Jersey, they're quarantining some travelers who are returning to the United States from Africa.

Joining us now is the New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Mary Bassett.

Dr. Bassett, thanks very much for joining us. Let me get some details because we just got information, the governors of New York and New Jersey, Andrew Cuomo and Chris Christie, they're issuing an announcement requiring what they call mandatory quarantines for at least some travelers returning from West African countries affected by Ebola.

Those considered high risk in the first use of the policy, New Jersey on Friday quarantined a female health care worker who cared for Ebola patients in Africa. The worker has no symptoms but the state has still ordered her quarantined. Explain what's going on here.

DR. MARY BASSETT, NYC HEALTH COMMISSIONER: Well, this is the idea that people who have simply taken care of people with Ebola in Africa should be put under quarantine. Not simply active surveillance, which is the current policy.

BLITZER: Like the doctor who returned who does now have Ebola and is in Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, he was treating Ebola patients in Guinea in West Africa. He was not quarantined when he came back. But this is a new policy I assume based on what his experience was. Is that -- is that fair?

BASSETT: Well, I don't know. But -- and I know we're still waiting the written version of this policy, so none of us have had the chance to look at it as it's been detailed.

When Dr. Spencer returned from Guinea to Europe, and then onwards to the United States, he was well. He had no fever. He felt well. And he was a doctor who had been looking after patients in an Ebola treatment unit wearing full protective gear. So under our current way of considering high risk, he would not have been considered high risk. We consider people who use full protective gear to be people who are protected, and we know that it works.

We've successfully treated patients in the United States and of course, many patients have been treated in the countries heavily affected, effectively by health workers who had this gear. Sadly, too many health workers in West Africa did not. But this gear worked to protect people when they've been trained in how to use it and have practiced its use.

BLITZER: But in the case of Dr. Craig Spencer, who now is at Bellevue Hospital with Ebola, that clearly did not work. And I assume that they're concerned since he was dealing with Ebola patients and came back to the United States, they want to make sure they don't have any more Ebola patients that come forward and have an opportunity to go to bowling alleys or subways, or anything like that. That's why they're going to mandate these kinds of quarantines.

I think that's the theory learning from his specific case. I assume you agree?

BASSETT: Well, right now I'm really focused on the fact that we've got somebody with confirmed Ebola in New York City. Dr. Spencer, as you pointed out, a very courageous young physician who was working in West Africa, which remains the source of our global concern in terms of Ebola. He was there, looking after patients. And we know we've got to break the back of that epidemic in West Africa in order to reduce the risk for all of us.

So that's what he was doing, and he came back, as I said, he was well when he came back, he started monitoring his temperature every day, and for the first time yesterday, he had an elevated temperature. He called his organization, Doctors Without Borders, they called us, and we rapidly put him into quarantine. So the times that he was walking around New York City or -- and he -- or taking the subway, as we have openly discussed from the beginning, he was not sick.

BLITZER: Yes, but --

BASSETT: And he was not infectious.

BLITZER: And let's be clear, he's a very courageous doctor, he didn't have to go to Guinea, didn't have to go West Africa.

BASSETT: He did not.

BLITZER: He didn't have to go work with an excellent organization like Doctors Without Borders. He was trying to save people's lives over there and he deserves a lot of credit.

Having said that, knowing what we know now, should he have self- quarantined himself upon returning to New York City?

BASSETT: Well, he did what we've asked people to do, he measured his temperature twice a day, and he, as I've said, was -- didn't have a fever when he left Guinea. Felt well, completely well. Didn't have a fever when he left Europe and came here.

And I think it bears repeating for everyone how people get Ebola. Ebola is spread by people who are sick with Ebola and through contact with their body fluids. So people, when they're infected with Ebola, but before they get sick, are not contagious.

BLITZER: Tell us how he's doing, what kind of treatment is he receiving, and do you want to keep him at Bellevue or move him to NIH?

BASSETT: All good questions. So what we know is that he is talking with people on the cell phone and remains in stable condition. And that's all good news. So he's at Bellevue Hospital in a treatment unit that is in a dedicated isolation unit. One that's been present at Bellevue since the 1990s. Over the last couple of months, the Health Department had been working with Bellevue.

Bellevue is a wonderful hospital renowned for its doctors and for its ability to deliver intensive care. And it's really up to the patient and his team where he continues to get his care.

BLITZER: All right. Good luck, Dr. Bassett, thanks for all that you are doing, all of your colleagues are doing. We really appreciate it. And good luck, of course, to Dr. Craig Spencer. We hope he has a full, full recovery.

Much more on the breaking news right after this.

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BLITZER: Happening now, breaking news. School shooting. A student gunman opens gunfire at a high school cafeteria with deadly results. We're learning new information about the shooter and his victims.

Ebola quarantine. At least three people who had contact with the New York City's first Ebola patient, they are now put in isolation as officials urgently look for others who may have been exposed to the virus.