A man killed his mother at their house and then went berserk opening fire inside the elementary school where she taught, massacring 26 people, including 20 children, as youngsters cowered in fear to the sound of gunshots coming out from the building.

The 20-year-old killer, having two handguns, committed suicide at the school, with death toll reaching a figure of 28.

This incident has come less than two weeks before Christmas. It is the US second-deadliest school shooting, exceeded only by the Virginia Tech massacre that claimed 33 lives in 2007.

“Our hearts are broken today,” a tearful Obama, not able to maintain his composure, said at the White House. Obama called for “meaningful action” in order to make sure that such things do not happen in future. “As a country, we have been through this too many times,” he said.

According to the media reports, the gunman, Adam Lanza was suffering from  a personality disorder.