No students were injured in the shooting on Friday at Richneck Elementary School, police said. The teacher – a woman in her 30s – suffered life-threatening injuries.

Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew told reporters her condition had improved somewhat by late afternoon.

Police said the child had a handgun in the classroom and that they took that student into custody.

“We did not have a situation where someone was going around the school shooting,” Drew told reporters. “We have a situation in one particular location where a gunshot was fired.”

The shooting was not an accident, he said.