Oregon Man Who Stopped School Shooting Reflects on Tragedy and Regret
Kaylub Giamanco, who ended a deadly school shooting in Bend, Oregon, shares his emotional struggle over the lives lost during the October 15, 2026 attack.
POLICY WIRE — Bend, Oregon — The local man who intervened to stop a lethal shooting rampage at Silver Rail Elementary School last week has spoken out, describing himself as the children’s final line of defense while expressing deep sorrow that he could not prevent every casualty.
Kaylub Giamanco, a 36-year-old carpenter whose own daughters attend the school, confronted 16-year-old gunman Griffin J. John II on October 15, 2026. The attacker, a former student, had breached the building with a shotgun and targeted a special needs classroom, resulting in the deaths of three children—aged 5, 8, and 11—and one teacher.
In an interview published Friday by Oregon Public Broadcasting, Giamanco recounted the harrowing moments he spent crawling toward the gunfire after witnessing the shooter attack a person mowing the lawn and a pickup truck. He described hearing children pleading for their lives before he entered the school through a shattered window and engaged the assailant, who was already struggling with an unarmed teacher.
Giamanco fired his .40-caliber handgun, killing the attacker and ending the assault. While authorities and President Donald Trump have lauded his actions as heroic, Giamanco remains focused on the lives lost. He told the broadcaster that while he feels he was meant to be there, he continues to grapple with the weight of the children he was unable to save.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
