Hero father Kaylub Giamanco, who brought down Oregon school shooter, happened to be driving by when he heard shots fired... and feels 'guilty' he wasn't there in time to save four victims

The heroic father who shot the gunman who killed four people inside an Oregon elementary school happened to drive by the building when he heard shots fired.

Kaylub Giamanco, 36, was driving past his daughters' school on his way home for lunch on Thursday when he heard gunfire. 

He is a carpenter and a father of two girls who attend Silver Rail Elementary, his brother told NBC News.

After hearing the gunshots, he followed 16-year-old shooter John J Griffin into the building, his brother, Kyle, said.

Kyle explained that his brother owns a concealed weapon and followed the shooter into the special education room.

Giamanco doesn't feel like a hero because he is haunted by what he saw in the classroom and feels guilty that he didn't save more people, his brother said.

The Giamanco family is friends with the seven-year-old who was injured. The seven-year-old is a wheelchair user and was shot in the face.

Kyle said the child is recovering from surgery.

During a press conference on Thursday, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek called Giamanco a hero,

'To the community member who heroically intervened to stop further loss of life: Your actions carry a heavy emotional burden, and I just want you to know that my thoughts are with you as well,' Kotek said.

The first victim of the shooting has been named as a five-year-old boy called Rhoam Summer.

His father, Kelik Summer, wrote on Facebook: 'Today has been the worst day of my life. My son Rhoam was killed in a school shooting.

'We are broken and lost, but are surrounded by friends and family who are keeping us safe.'

Griffin used a shotgun believed to have been given to him by his mother to blast out the locks of a 'safety vestibule' meant to keep schools safe. He then entered the special education section of Silver Rail and began shooting.

He also shot a seven-year-old wheelchair user and a 54-year-old teacher, both of whom survived their injuries but are critically ill in hospital.

It has also since emerged that the children inside were dressed their best ahead of photo day, with one girl who had to hide in silence, too traumatized to sleep.

Hannah Ferrie told The New York Times that her two young daughters, ages five and seven, are so scared after surviving Thursday's shooting.

She said her seven-year-old was forced to sit in silence next to her second-grade teacher after they heard gunshots and glass shattering, and now she can't leave her mother's side and is too scared to sleep alone.

'It’s such a relief, and also a feeling of profound guilt that other parents didn’t get that,' Ferrie said.

'This is a systemic problem that the United States exclusively has. It’s because we value Second Amendment rights over children’s lives, and that has to change. If I hear another thing that says thoughts and prayers, I will be even more disgusted.'

One onlooker was sitting in his red Toyota Tacoma idling outside the school when he spotted the teen approaching the Silver Rail building with his gun.

Concerned by what he saw, the driver confronted the teen, who returned a series of shots at the vehicle.

Photos shared online showed the Toyota with three bullet holes lining the bottom of the passenger-side door and another two near the front of the door. Two more bullet holes chipped off the paint on the base of the truck's bed.

The rear passenger-side window was also apparently left completely shattered, with no glass visible.

This is a breaking news story...