Teach ran toward gunfire

The English teacher who was injured in a Texas high-school shooting heroically ran to the classroom where gunfire broke out after hearing cries for help, his students said.

Calvin Pettitt, 25, had been teaching his secondperiod class when he rushed to one of his colleagues in distress across the hall Wednesday morning at Timberview HS in Arlington, news station WFAA TV eported.

“A teacher’s yelling out ‘help’ about three times. Not more than three seconds later, there were about six shots let off,” senior Jaeden Marshall told the news station.

The gunfire struck Pettitt in the back, leaving him with broken ribs and a collapsed lung, according to his family.

“He actually texted the class group chat that he’s fine and he’s in stable condition and he loves us,” Marshall told the outlet.

Pettitt, who was in the hospital in good condition, narrowly escaped death, according to his family.

“He got shot in the back, and they said he’s really lucky because it barely missed his aorta,” his sister wrote on Twitter.

“He’ll be in the hospital for a few days, but he’s going to be fine,” she added.

Police said Pettitt was among four victims injured when a student opened fire during a fight in class at around 9:15 a.m.

The suspected shooter, Timothy George Simpkins, 18, was arrested Wednesday and charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

A 15-year-old boy underwent surgery for his injuries and was in critical condition, while a teenage girl suffered an abrasion when she was grazed by a bullet, police said. She was in good condition and expected to be discharged.

The fourth victim, a pregnant district employee, fell during the shooting, NBC-DFW reported. She received medical attention at the scene and declined further treatment.