Sheriff Says Up to 10 Killed in Texas High School Shooting [UPDATED]

UPDATE 10:58 a.m. - Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said he could not be precise about the number of deaths at Santa Fe High School, but did say as many as 10 people have been killed, most of them students.

There are also reports that officers observed two visible IEDs inside the high school, and possibly a "live pipe bomb." The Santa Fe Independent School District said in a statement that authorities are in the process of rendering the devices safe.

UPDATE 10:00 a.m. - KHOU in Houston has reported that at least eight people are dead as a result of the shooting.

SANTA FE, Texas (AP) — Injuries have been confirmed following a shooting Friday at a high school near Houston and the suspected shooter has been arrested, according to school officials.

Assistant Principal Cris Richardson confirms that an active shooter was on campus at Santa Fe High School, which was placed on lockdown around 8 a.m. She said the shooter has since been "arrested and secured."

The school district issued a statement saying injures have been confirmed but no details would be immediately released. School officials said law enforcement officers were working to secure the building "and initiate all emergency management protocols to release and move students to another location."

Students from the high school are being transported to another location to reunite with their parents.

"We hope the worst is over and I really can't say any more about that because it would be pure speculation," Richardson told media outlets at the scene.

One student told Houston television station KTRK in a telephone interview that a gunman came into her first-period art class and started shooting. The student said she saw one girl with blood on her leg as the class evacuated the room.

"We thought it was a fire drill at first but really, the teacher said, 'Start running,'" the student told the television station.

The student said she didn't get a good look at the shooter because she was running away. She said students escaped through a door at the back of the classroom.

Authorities have not yet confirmed that report. Aerial footage from the scene showed students standing in a grassy field and three life-flight helicopters landing at the school.

The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said it was responding to a shooting at the school.

There was a large law enforcement response to the same school in February when it was placed on lockdown after students and teachers said they heard "popping sounds." Santa Fe police swept the campus but found no threat.

Santa Fe is a city of about 13,000 residents located 30 miles (48 kilometers) southeast of Houston.