PERRY, Iowa — The community of Perry, Iowa is grieving following a shooting at Perry High School early Thursday morning.
A sixth grader died in the shooting, and seven other victims — four students and three staff members — were taken to area hospitals for treatment, according to Iowa law enforcement.
The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation identified one of the staff members injured in the shooting as Perry High School Principal Dan Marburger, who has been leading the school for nearly three decades.
Marburger's daughter, Claire Marburger, told Local 5 the family only knows that he is "stable" after surgery, but "nowhere near out of the woods, he'll be in and out of surgeries for the next couple days and weeks."
Claire shared on Facebook about her father's leadership at the school, saying that she'd heard he approached Butler during the shooting.
"As I heard of a gunman, I instantly had a feeling my Dad would be a victim as he would put himself in harms way for the benefit of the kids and his staff. It is absolutely zero surprise to hear he tried to approach and talk Dylan down and distract him long enough for some students to get out of the cafeteria. That's just Dad," the post reads.
At a press conference on Friday, Perry Community School District Superintendent Clark Wicks praised Marburger for his actions
"He was a hero," Wicks said. "And I know that it helped, the way that he a approached that situation. It saved some lives."
Wicks also said an associate principal also "saved lives" during the Thursday shooting.
"We hate to see anybody injured, and for sure any deaths," Wicks said. "But because of the heroic acts that they have done. . . we are very proud of the way they handled it. They're heroes."
Outside of work, Claire said Marburger's grandchildren and family are the best part of his life.
Easton Valley School District, where Marburger attended school, also shared about him on Facebook. The post reads in part:
"Sadly, we have also received information that one of our former East Central graduates, Dan Marburger, was one of the victims injured in the incident ... Our hearts break to hear of this kind of violence that affects so many people, including many in our community. Our thoughts will also be with the entire Perry community as they grieve through this traumatic event."
Local 5 will update this story as more information becomes available. Download the We Are Iowa app or subscribe to Local 5's "5 Things to Know" email newsletter for the latest.