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Students in Adelaide classroom stabbing were 'good friends'

The two students at the centre of a classroom stabbing at a South Australian high school on Tuesday were good friends who had just returned from an interstate trip together.

As the 17-year-old victim’s condition improved on Wednesday, her alleged attacker was described as a quiet teenager with no history of violence.

Just last week the accused, Amber Rover, and her alleged victim posed side-by-side on a school trip to the snow.

Just last week the accused, Amber Rover, and her alleged victim posed side-by-side on a school trip to the snow. Source: 7 News
Just last week the accused, Amber Rover, and her alleged victim posed side-by-side on a school trip to the snow. Source: 7 News

The stabbing happened during a Year 12 English lesson at Renmark High School on Tuesday afternoon, shocking staff, students and parents.

“You don’t go to school to see that, you go to learn,” a fellow student’s father said.

“Everybody’s in shock.”

The school went into lockdown as the victim was rushed to Berri Hospital then airlifted to Adelaide in a serious condition.

The victim was rushed to Berri Hospital then airlifted to Adelaide. Source: 7 News
The victim was rushed to Berri Hospital then airlifted to Adelaide. Source: 7 News

Under arrest, 18-year-old Amber Rover was also treated at the local hospital, with her mother rushing to be by her side.

In the middle of the night, the accused was taken to Royal Adelaide Hospital.

A bedside court hearing scheduled for Wednesday afternoon was delayed after she underwent unspecified surgery.

“It’s scary, you drop your kids at school and you think they’re going to be safe,” mother Trilby Westley said.

“For their parents to get a phone call and say, ‘your child’s been stabbed,’ I can’t imagine what they’re going through.”

The alleged attacker’s mother rushes to be by her side. Source: 7 News
The alleged attacker’s mother rushes to be by her side. Source: 7 News

The Education Department’s Anne Millard described the stabbing as “a serious, disturbing incident.”

“Any incident is of concern to us, but particularly with this level of violence,” she said.

What sparked the attack remains a mystery. It’s alleged that the girl used a knife she had hidden up her sleeve.

Seven News has been told Amber Rover was not at school on Tuesday morning, arriving later in the day dressed all in black instead of her school uniform.

Amber Rover has been described as a quiet teenager with no history of violence. Source: 7 News
Amber Rover has been described as a quiet teenager with no history of violence. Source: 7 News

Parents say that should have had alarm bells ringing.

“The school should have picked up on something a lot sooner, I think,” one father said.

Many parents are demanding an urgent security upgrade.

“If you can get a weapon into a school, a knife, and stab somebody, there’s something wrong,” Ms Westley said.