Georgia high school shooting: Frightened student texts mom during horrifying rampage

Text messages from a student to his mother reveal the horror happening inside a Georgia high school where authorities have confirmed four are dead and many others wounded after a shooting. 

"School shooting rn. i'm scared.  pls, i'm not joking," the text messages posted by Erin Clark read.

The mother then responds to her son and says she is leaving work.

"i love you," the student tells his mom.

GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL SHOOTING: 4 DEAD, ONE SUSPECT IN CUSTODY, SHERIFF SAYS

She says it back and asks where he is.

"class. someone's dead," the student responds.

"I just saw ambulance and police heading that way," the mom tells her son.

Photos and video of the police presence outside the school accompanied the post. 

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation confirmed that four people died at Apalachee High School in Barrow County — approximately 40 miles northeast of Atlanta — and nine others were taken to various hospitals with injuries. The suspect is alive and in custody.

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"At approximately 10:23 a.m. officers from multiple law enforcement agencies and Fire/EMS personnel were dispatched to the high school in reference to a reported active shooting," the Barrow County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. 

Barrow County Sheriff Judd Smith addressed reporters Wednesday afternoon, providing limited details. Smith said he first received a call of an active shooter at 9:30 a.m. He confirmed that there were "multiple injuries," but would not confirm nor deny whether there were any deaths.

The sheriff said law enforcement officials were conducting a "very, very fluid investigation" and asked for patience from the media to let them gather the facts. He predicted that it will take "multiple days" to figure out what happened and how.

Smith did confirm that a suspect is in custody, and said they were "in the process" of reuniting students with their parents.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Fox News Digital's Timothy Nerozzi and Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.