A man armed with a hatchet jumped the wall of a kindergarten in Brazil and embarked on a deadly massacre that left four children dead and at least five others wounded.
The dead children — three boys and a girl — from the Good Shepherd Centre in the city of Blumenau were aged between five and seven.
The man fled after teachers came to the defence of the children and later turned himself in at a police station.
The attacker did not appear to have any connection with the school.
Authorities were searching for a motive, a police detective told television reporters.
Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva condemned the horrific attack as a “monstrosity”.
“There is no greater pain than that of a family that loses its children or grandchildren, even more so in an act of violence against innocent and defenseless children,” he wrote on Twitter.
Images broadcast on networks showed weeping parents outside the private daycare centre.
Rumours spread on social media of other potential attacks, forcing the Blumenau’s mayor to suspend classes across the city.
Mayor Hildebrandt declared a 30-day mourning period.
He said five wounded children were take to hospitals. One was in serious condition.
School attacks in Brazil have happened with greater frequency in recent years.
Last week, a student in Sao Paulo fatally stabbed a teacher and wounded several others in Sao Paulo.
