Erfurt – A City in Tears

The massacre at Gutenberg High School has changed the city of Erfurt.

There is a tremendous sense of loss and disbelief in Erfurt, especially among the teachers and students of the school who escaped the shooting unhurt.

"When you look at the building and you know you're going to be going back to class there -- all you can think about is the teachers and the students who were killed," one surviving student said and broke out in tears.

People have been placing flowers and candles outside the school where the shooting took place. All weekend long, countless local residents came to the site in quiet mourning.

On Saturday, German chancellor Gerhard Schröder and his wife also paid their respects at the scene of the massacre, adding a bouquet of flowers to the hundreds already there.

The Chancellor and his wife then went to the city's cathedral, where they took part in an ecumenical church service (photo). The church was packed with thousands of mourners. Among them was Bernhard Vogel, the state premier of Thuringia, the German federal state that is home to the city of Erfurt. Vogel was shocked by Friday's senseless tragedy. "This is the biggest disaster to strike modern-day Thuringia. We are deeply shaken," Vogel said.

The state premier said he was moved by the outpouring of solidarity and sympathy. People from other parts of Germany and from all over the world have offered help to the families of the victims and the survivors. "Thuringia is mourning," Vogel said, "and all of Germany stands united with Thuringia in mourning."