“1 BLEEDING TO DEATH”: The Preventable Death Of Columbine Teacher Dave Sanders
APDave Sanders was credited with saving as many as 200 lives by alerting students to the shooting.
By 11:24 a.m., it was clear that everyone in the school was in danger. William David “Dave” Sanders, a 47-year-old business and computer teacher, leapt on a chair in the cafeteria and shouted: “Get out! Get out! They’re shooting!”
Sanders directed students to safety, instructing them to flee via the auditorium and the kitchen, then ran upstairs to warn others. According to Sports Illustrated, Sanders’ actions likely saved about 200 lives. But sadly, the teacher became one of the Columbine shooting victims that day.
Born in Indiana in 1951, Sanders had been a star athlete in his youth before becoming a teacher and coach. By 1999, he had taught at Columbine High School for 25 years, and, as a coach for various school sports teams, he was known for his “quick to listen; slow to speak” coaching style.
Sanders would later become known for facing danger head-on.
After alerting students in the cafeteria, Sanders encountered Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold near a science room. The shooters opened fire, striking Sanders in the torso and neck. Badly injured, Sanders nevertheless propped himself up on his elbows, still determined to direct students to safety.
With the help of a fellow teacher, Rich Long, Sanders was able to make his way to safety in the science room. A large group of students had barricaded there, and — as fire alarms shrieked and Harris and Klebold moved their massacre to the library — those with first aid training tried to save Sanders.
Daniel Mauser Memorial WebsiteEvidence from the Columbine massacre, including a sign that was placed in a window to try to save Dave Sanders.
One teacher even placed a sign in the window: “1 BLEEDING TO DEATH.”
But it took hours for paramedics to reach Sanders. Amidst the confusion over Harris and Klebold’s location — and because some first responders thought that the sign in the window was a trick by the shooters — Sanders tragically bled to death over the course of about four hours.
