America witnessed its deadliest peacetime shooting massacre when a gunman killed more than 30 people yesterday at Virginia’s biggest university. The first shots were fired in a dormitory at Virginia Tech at about 7.15am yesterday, killing at least two people. Two hours later a gunman continued the rampage in an engineering classroom on the other side of the campus, killing 30.

A lone male, believed to have been responsible for the carnage in the classroom, later turned the gun on himself. Police said that they were still investigating the links between the shootings.

There were unconfirmed reports that the killer was an Asian man in his twenties who may have believed that his girlfriend was unfaithful.

By early today the death toll had risen to 33, with a further 26 people injured. University authorities and police struggled to explain why they had allowed students on to the campus after the first shootings and failed to issue proper warnings.

The internet was also buzzing with postings of survivors’ tales, including a dramatic description of students barricading themselves inside a classroom while the killer tried to shoot his way in.

President Bush said: “Our nation is shocked and horrified.”

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