PAWTUCKET, R.I. — Police responded Monday afternoon, Feb. 16, 2026, to a shooting at Dennis M. Lynch Arena in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, where two people were confirmed dead, and three others were injured in what police described as a targeted attack that may have been related to a family dispute.
Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves said Monday afternoon that the gunman died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after firing shots. Goncalves said one of those killed was a young girl.
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The three injured people were in critical condition at the hospital, Goncalves said, adding that they all had gunshot wounds.
Outside the arena, tearful families and high school hockey players still in uniform could be seen hugging before they boarded a bus to leave the area. Roads surrounding the arena were shut down as a heavy police presence remained and helicopters flew overhead.
Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were responding to assist local law enforcement, an agency spokesperson said.
Pawtucket is a few miles outside Providence and sits just north of the city near the Massachusetts border.
