Dad who stopped school shooting says he went into "mission mode"

The begetter who changeable and killed a gunman astatine his daughters' Oregon school opened up astir his acquisition successful his archetypal web tv interrogation connected "CBS Mornings," recounting the infinitesimal helium fought with the shooter and however his heroic actions person affected him since. 

Kaylub Giamanco, 36, was driving by Silver Rail Elementary School connected Oct. 15 connected his mode location for luncheon erstwhile helium saw the shooter, aboriginal identified arsenic 16-year-old Griffin J. John II, occurrence astatine a passing pickup motortruck with a shotgun. The shooter past forced his mode into the school, wherever Giamanco's 2 daughters are students. 

"It was similar combat oregon flight, and thing clicked, and I just, I analyzed the situation. I knew thing was up. All the emotions flood retired of me. I conscionable benignant of went into a ngo mode," Giamanco said. 

Giamanco called 911 and said helium was pursuing the shooter into the building. He said helium past crawled into the gathering and peeked into the schoolroom window, wherever helium saw the gunman struggling with a teacher. She was unarmed, but had thrown her cellphone astatine the shooter and tackled him, according to police. Giamanco said that the teacher's involution gave him "the divided 2nd of having 2 radical side-by-side." 

"I knew that helium wasn't paying attraction to me, truthful it gave maine the accidental to plaything the doorway unfastened and measurement successful and implicit my mission, truthful to speak," Giamanco said. 

Giamanco said that aft helium changeable the gunman the archetypal time, the shooter was inactive alive, "struggling with his weapon" and "trying to regain control." The shooter was besides trying to accidental something, Giamanco said, but helium didn't listen. 

"I didn't privation to perceive what helium had to say. He had taken lives," Giamanco said. "I said 'F--- you.'" 

"I don't cognize what helium was astir to accidental and it didn't matter," Giamanco added. "It didn't matter. I conscionable knew helium had taken the lives of guiltless small babies, you know, 5, 8 and 11." 

A teacher was besides among those killed. Another teacher and a 7-year-old were injured successful the shooting. 

Giamanco said helium dropped his weapon erstwhile helium confirmed the shooter was dead. He went to cheque connected the different teacher, who "ran distant from" him, helium said. He said it wasn't "the top feeling," but that helium understood she believed helium mightiness beryllium different progressive shooter. 

Then constabulary arrived connected the scene. Giamanco said helium raised his hands and asked for help, past asked if helium could prime up his limb and spell to his car to call his loved ones. 

"During the concern I was not scared. Like I say, it was the combat mode that clicked in, and I completed my mission," Giamanco said. "It wasn't until I called my woman and my mother that everything benignant of flooded successful connected me." 

"Mixed feelings"

Kelsey Giamanco said she knew thing was incorrect adjacent earlier her hubby called her. She had been expecting him for lunch, truthful she had been pursuing his determination connected her telephone and noticed him stopped astatine the school. Kelsey Giamanco said she is usually the genitor called for aboriginal pick-ups, truthful she didn't cognize what was going on. Once her hubby called her and told her what had happened, she instantly drove to the schoolhouse to conscionable him. 

Kaylub Giamanco said that arsenic the "gravity of the situation" deed him, helium felt fearfulness and had thorax palpitations. Then, erstwhile helium reunited with his children, determination were "mixed feelings." 

"I was truly bittersweet different radical didn't get to clasp their children that nighttime ... but it felt bully to conscionable compression them and cognize that they were going to inactive beryllium present and they could turn up to be, you know, beauteous young women," Giamanco said. 

Talking to their children, who are 5 and 10, astir what happened has been tricky, helium said. He tries to reassure them that helium is determination to support them.  

"Our 10-year-old is precise intellectual, truthful we person small conversations there, fundamentally conscionable like, 'I conscionable did what I felt was right,'" Giamanco said. 

He is besides inactive grappling with the event. Giamanco said helium tries to distract himself and thrust his motorcycle oregon ungraded bikes arsenic overmuch arsenic possible. But erstwhile helium closes his eyes, helium hears "children's screams and what it sounds similar for them to plead for their life." 

"I cognize precisely what that audio is successful my brain," Giamanco said. "That's where, again, erstwhile I'm unsocial astatine nighttime and acceptable to spell to bed, I don't ever spell to bed. Sometimes I get trapped successful my brain." 

Giamanco has not returned to his occupation arsenic a carpenter. He said helium is reasoning astir changing his vocation and mightiness commencement a nonprofit for intelligence wellness and schoolhouse security.

As helium plans his aboriginal successful the aftermath of the shooting, a celebrated punctuation from "Spider-Man" brings him immoderate solace, helium said.  

"For me, erstwhile you are fixed these powers and you don't usage them and idiosyncratic gets hurt, past it is your fault. So I feel, to me, that means, if I person these abilities successful beingness to beryllium a protector, if I'm not utilizing them and radical bash get hurt, that is my responsibility astatine the extremity of the day," Giamanco said. "It is benignant of the aforesaid happening arsenic 'With large powers travel large responsibilities.' So I genuinely consciousness similar I person thing to bash now." 

This communicative published first connected CBS News astatine 10:46 a.m. connected Nov. 10, 2026.

In:

• Shooting
• School Shooting
• Oregon