One person has been reported dead and four others injured after a shooting at Banga National High School in South Cotabato on Friday, September 18, sending students to hospitals, triggering a police investigation and forcing the suspension of classes across Banga municipality.
đ¨ LATEST UPDATE â September 18, 2026
Six students have been confirmed dead and 17 seriously injured following the shooting at Banga National High School in South Cotabato, according to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
The suspected gunman, reported to be a 16-year-old student, died after an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Authorities say the situation has been contained, classes have been suspended, and social workers are providing psychological first aid and psychosocial support. Officials have also urged the public not to circulate unverified information or graphic footage out of respect for victims and their families.
LOOK: The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) immediately mobilized to provide critical life-saving assistance following a school shooting incident at Banga National High School in Banga, South Cotabato, at approximately 2 PM today, Sept. 18, 2026.
â GMA News (@gmanews) September 18, 2026
According to the PRC, preliminary⌠pic.twitter.com/yYDVdFyhGm
South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. said five students were affected by the incident. One died while four others were receiving hospital treatment as authorities worked to establish exactly what happened inside the school.
Banga National High School shooting: latest details
The shooting happened at Banga National High School in Barangay Benitez, Banga, South Cotabato. Local reports placed the incident at around 1:30 p.m., with emergency personnel and police responding to the campus shortly afterward.
Police Regional Office 12 information cited in local reporting indicated that a .45-caliber pistol was involved. Victims were taken for treatment, including to Surallah Hospital and South Cotabato Provincial Hospital.
GMA News reported that Governor Tamayo confirmed one death and four injuries, making that the clearest casualty figure available from provincial authorities as the investigation continued.
Student suspected in preliminary investigation
According to preliminary information attributed to Tamayo in local reporting, the suspected gunman was also a minor student. The initial account indicated that four fellow students were shot before the suspected attacker reportedly turned the firearm on himself.
Authorities have not yet released a final reconstruction of the incident, and details involving minors should be treated carefully while investigators establish the sequence of events.
Reports have also mentioned a possible connection between the suspected shooter and an online community described as the âTrue Crime Community.â That information remains part of the investigation. Authorities have not established that any online group caused, organized or encouraged the shooting.
Classes suspended across Banga
The Banga Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office suspended classes at all levels throughout Banga following the shooting.
The decision affected students beyond Banga National High School as authorities secured the area and families sought information about the safety of children and school personnel.
The emergency comes as Philippine authorities continue responding to other major incidents, including the recent MV June Aster ferry disaster, where casualty information changed as rescue and recovery operations progressed.
Another major regional emergency has involved the Virgo Transport 8 passenger ship incident, where search teams have also had to work through changing preliminary information during an active response.
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DepEd prepares psychological support
The Department of Education said it was deeply concerned by the Banga shooting and was coordinating with its Schools Division Office, Regional Office, local authorities and law enforcement.
DepEd said psychological first aid and mental health and psychosocial support would be available for students, teachers and others affected by the incident.
The department also urged the public to remain calm and avoid spreading unverified information while investigators establish the facts.
Public told not to share shooting videos
DepEd Region XII separately asked people to stop distributing videos connected to the incident, warning that sharing graphic footage could cause additional trauma and violate the privacy of victims and their families.
Images, casualty claims and descriptions of the shooting began circulating online soon after the emergency. Some early local reports carried higher death and injury figures than those attributed to Governor Tamayo.
For that reason, the current one-dead, four-injured figure should remain the primary reported toll unless police, provincial officials or hospitals provide a newer consolidated update.
Police investigate motive and firearm access
Several major questions remain unanswered, including what led to the shooting, how the firearm reached the school and the precise sequence of events inside the campus.
Investigators are expected to examine witness accounts, evidence recovered from the scene and relevant digital information as they work to establish a motive.
The Banga incident follows other serious school shootings reported in the Philippines in 2026, placing renewed attention on campus security, firearm access and emergency preparedness. There is currently no established connection between those earlier incidents and the Banga shooting.
Police, DepEd and provincial authorities are expected to provide further information as the investigation develops and hospitals update the condition of those injured.
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