A 6-year-old boy is recovering after surgery Friday for a gunshot wound suffered a day earlier at his elementary school in Mississippi.

According to a statement from the Newton Municipal School District, the gun discharged in the backpack of a student at Newton Elementary School. The bullet hit the child in the leg. He was airlifted to a hospital in Jackson, where he underwent surgery.

Police classified the incident as an accidental shooting, news outlets reported.

Asked what would happen to the student who brought the gun to school, Police Chief Randy Patrick said the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is handling the case and any outcome will be tied to that agency’s findings.

Parents said shootings at schools are alarming, but they are even more concerned that it happened in such a close-knit community.

“The violence has got to stop between the kids, the adults,” said David Hill. “I have a 12-year-old daughter. Parents should be able to send their kids to school and know that they’re going to be okay.”