A Baltimore County police officer speaks to a parent as students are evacuated from Perry Hall High School in the wake of a shooting on August 27, 2012.
A student has been shot and critically wounded on the first day of classes at a high school in the US state of Maryland, forcing the shooting victim to be flown to a hospital to receive medical treatment.
Police said the incident took place at Perry Hall High School in Baltimore -- situated 57 kilometers (36 miles) northeast of Washington -- on Monday when a male student opened fire on another student, The Associated Press reported.
Senior Arielle Brown said that students were in the cafeteria for about 15 minutes, when they heard a popping sound reminiscent of the opening of a bag of potato chips.
Junior Miranda Wienecke said she saw people getting under a table.
"Then, I saw people running," Wienecke added. "We heard this huge boom, then there was another. Everything happened very fast."
The 15-year-old male shooter was stopped by staff members, who intervened and stopped him by tackling him, embracing him with a bear hug and pinning him against a vending machine.
Baltimore County police say a suspect was taken into custody after the shooting, and they are investigating the case.
Television images showed a shirtless male with his hands behind his back being put into a police cruiser.
The school was evacuated and students were taken to nearby Perry Hall Shopping Center, where they can reunite with their parents.
Meanwhile, a hospital spokeswoman said that the 17-year-old male student is in critical condition at Maryland Shock Trauma Center.
MP/JR
