Student, 12, caught up in Denver school shooting says he would have 'gone down fighting'

A 12-year-old caught up in a school shooting in Denver has said he would have ‘gone down fighting’.

Nate Holley was in his classroom at STEM School Highlands Ranch when gunmen opened fire.

One student died trying to stop the gunman, and eight others were injured in the attack on Tuesday.

Nate’s father had shared his fears as he waited for five hours to be reunited with his children during the incident.

His son told how they heard gunshots, prompting his teacher to move students to a cupboard.

"It was really chaotic," the 12-year-old told CNN. "Most of the kids didn't know what to do.

"I had my hand on a metal baseball bat just in case 'cause I was gonna go down fighting if I was gonna go down."

It has emerged that the school had been put on lockdown due to threats at nearby Columbine High School and Mr Holley said on Tuesday that this was the third time he had had to pick up his sons from school under such circumstances.

"This community, in Colorado, we've been through so much recently," he said.

"Enough is enough. We need to make a change and we need to do something or else we're just going to continue failing our kids."

Brendan Bialy told how he and two fellow students tackled the gunman during the incident, pushing him against a wall.

One of the three, Kendrick Castillo - who was just days from graduating - died during the tussle.

"Kendrick went out as a hero," said Brendan. "He was a foot away from the shooter and instead of running the opposite direction he ran toward it."

Authorities have said that the actions of Kendrick, Brendan and fellow student Joshua Jones, who was shot twice, had saved lives.

Two teens, both students at the school, have appeared in court in connection with the shooting.