Illinois student shoots classmate in high school cafeteria

An Illinois high school teacher subdued a school shooter who wounded a fellow student Wednesday morning, authorities say.

The male suspect is in custody and the injured student was in stable condition at a local hospital, the Associated Press reports. Names and ages of those involved have not been released.

Mattoon High School officials say the shooting occurred in the school's cafeteria around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday. 

"The School Resource Officers and school officials headed to the cafeteria where they heard shots fired," the Mattoon Community Unit School District 2 said in a release. "The suspect fired shots in the school cafeteria, before he was subdued and disarmed."

Witnesses describe chaos in and outside the school after the shots rang out.

“About 11:30 a.m. we saw five police cars go flying by and within a minute we heard kids screaming and running past this way and past that way,” said Mike Houser, a Mattoon business owner. “Then we walked out and started trying to calm the kids and kind of find out what happened. They said they were told to go to Riddle, so we started telling all the kids we saw go to Riddle.”

Houser later learned his son, MHS junior Dylan Sanders, was in the cafeteria when the shooting occurred.

“Our son came here from the high school and he said he was three or four feet from the shooter," added Houser. “He said he couldn’t see because there was a big concrete pillar in between. He heard the shots and they all just scattered.”

Mattoon High School student Colby Filipiak heard students running and yelling as they passed by his classroom door. The 16-year-old said that amidst the confusion his teacher told everyone to run out of the building, so they quickly followed others outside.

“We probably ran four or five blocks and hid in a cornfield,” said Filipiak. “Our goal was to go as far away from the school and away from the street and open areas as we could.”

He said although he didn't realize why they were escaping at first, it became more frightening once he realized. Once to safely in the cornfield, he called his dad, who picked him up within minutes.

Mattoon school officials say the high school will be open on Thursday morning to provide students access to counselors, clergy, and police officers for "comfort and counseling."

The school district will excuse any absences for families who wish to keep their children home. 

More details on the shooting were expected Wednesday evening at a joint press conference.

Stewart and Schabbing write for the Effingham, Illinois, Daily News. The Associated Press contributed to this report.