Classmates remember shooting victim

13-year-old girl shot, killed on bus on way to Palm Glades Preparatory Academy

MIAMI – Students remembered the 13-year-old girl who was shot and killed in front of her sister and several other students while riding the bus to a charter school in south Miami-Dade.

"She was really happy and I can't believe that she's gone," said Priscilla Llanes, a student at Palm Glades Preparatory Academy. "It's really hard to know that she's gone out of everyone that was in that bus."

The girl, who the principal said was named Lourdes, was shot and killed Tuesday morning. A male student was in custody shortly after the shooting.

The girl was airlifted to Miami Children's Hospital, where she died.

"She was one of my closest friends last year, and this year, we got closer," said Amanda Pavellion. "She was hyper and she was nice. She was always smiling."

"She was so energetic and there was nothing wrong about her. She had tons of friends," said Llanes.

The principal briefly addressed the media, calling the girl a wonderful student.

"We regret to inform that we did lose a student. Right now, we're grieving with the parents," said the principal. "Please, keep this family in prayers and my students here."

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15-year-old Jordyn Alexander Howe

Many parents showed up at the school right after the news broke.

"I'm just coming because I saw it on the TV to see if I need to pick up my daughter or not cause I don't even know," said one parent.

Milton Billups told Local 10 he tried calling his 13-year-old daughter's cellphone. When he received no answer, he immediately came to the school.

"She's 13, so when you get the information that a 13 year old [was] shot on the school bus and my daughter takes the bus, of course you panic. You know, you panic," said Billups.

Students said school administrators didn't make a mass announcement regarding the shooting but they still found out.

"We heard from a teacher. A teacher got an email that someone got shot," said one student.

"You can feel it being low," said one student. "Everybody's sad. Everybody's head down."