(CNN) — The picturesque campus of Umpqua Community College sits on a hill in the logging community of Roseburg, Oregon, some 180 miles south of Portland.
But the school, which prides itself on its website for providing “a peaceful, safe atmosphere,” was transformed Thursday by a deadly shooting. Preliminary information indicated 10 people were dead and more than 20 others injured, according to State Police spokesman Bill Fugate.
“This is not what you’d expect in Roseburg,” said Paula Caudill,who handles sales and marketing at the Abacela winery, which works closely with the community college. “Everybody knows everybody here. What’s so heartbreaking is that even if you don’t know someone directly affected by this you know someone who was.”
Roseburg, which has about 22,000 residents, is about 70 miles south of Eugene.
The college’s website said it offers “year-round recreational activities” and “affordable quality college education, life-long learning opportunities, workforce training and cultural programs for our communities.”
It’s not a traditional institution of higher learning, as the average age of its 13,600 students was 38 during the 2013-2014 school year, the website said. Only 740 of those were full-time students, 2,437 attended part time, and more than 10,000 fell under the umbrella of “community education.”
“This is so out of character for this whole area,” said Rick Francona, a CNN military analyst who lives in the area.
The-CNN-Wire
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