TACOMA, Washington — One student was shot to death in a high school hallway as classes were starting yesterday morning, and police arrested another student found wandering in a neighbourhood a few miles away, officials said.The slain student’s age and many details of the 7.30 a.m. shooting at Foss High School were not immediately released, but police spokesman Mark Fulghum said no one else was hurt.

The suspected shooter, another teenage Foss student, was captured about two hours later without putting up a fight, Police Detective Chris Taylor said. Police tracked down the suspect after witnesses identified him.

The shooting happened in a hallway at the school, on the first day back for students after the winter break, he said.

Two 15-year-old sophomores, Malcolm Clark and Josh Wilber, said they witnessed the shooting and were questioned by police. The gunman was was about five feet away from the victim and fired three shots, but did not appear to target anyone else, they said.

“He got shot — bang — and he just fell,” Clark said. “He just froze and he fell backwards into the lockers.”

“He didn’t scream or nothing. He didn’t move when he hit the ground,” Wilber said.

Sam Sao, 14, said she was in the lunchroom, waiting for the bell to ring, when the shots were fired.

“Everyone was yelling, ‘Get in the gym! Get in the gym!”’ she said. “At first we thought it was a fight. Then the teachers started getting on the tables and screaming.”

The school was locked down after the shooting. By about 8.30 a.m., police had secured the building and students were being sent home, Tacoma School District spokeswoman Pam Thompson said. Classes were cancelled for the rest of the day.

Angela Millette was among the parents who flocked to the area to pick up their children from a nearby grocery store parking lot.

Millette, who was still wearing pajamas after rushing out of her home, threw her arms around her 16-year-old daughter Ashley as the sophomore stepped off a bus near the school.

“I was looking for her and finally, by the grace of God ... the person opened up the school bus, and there’s my daughter,” Millette said. “I was so glad to see that she was OK.”