UPDATE: Catilyn Abercrombie in fair condition after school shooting in Fayetteville

A 15-year-old girl was upgraded to fair condition Monday afternoon after suffering a "very serious wound" to the neck in an unexplained shooting at Cape Fear High School near Fayetteville, according to the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office.

Catilyn Abercrombie was taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center while authorities scrambled to get answers about where the shot came from and who was responsible according to a WRAL report.

Despite her injury, Abercrombie was able to nod and shake her head in response to investigators' questions, sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Tanna said. She was headed into surgery shortly after 4 p.m. so that doctors could remove a bullet fragment from her neck.

Her parents were with her in the hospital.

Witnesses told investigators they heard a "pop" as Abercrombie walked outside the school cafeteria, and they saw her collapse in the breezeway, according to Cumberland County Sheriff Earl "Moose" Butler.

Tanna said the bullet fragment could help investigators determine the caliber of the gun used in the shooting. The area is known to be a popular hunting destination.

Parents, however, told WRAL News that they have had concerns about security at the school.

One parents said his daughter was next to Abercrombie when she was shot and that she had told him about gang fights on school grounds. He said he picked her up from school early and would keep her home for the rest of the week out of concern for her safety.

School officials have not confirmed any reports of recent gang activity.

"It was such a chaotic moment that everyone was trying to figure out what happened," Tanna said.

She added that, although some parents believe the shooting was gang-related, investigators are no closer to determining what happened than they were right after the shooting. They are trying to gather as much as information as possible and get all students out of the school safely.

"This is probably one of the strangest shootings we've come across," she said.

When WRAL reporter Bryan Mims got to the school shortly after the shooting, he found a group of parents standing outside, desperate for information. Some mothers asked him, "Can you please tell me if my kids are all right?"

Cape Fear High was on code red lock down, meaning no one could enter or leave the school, for several hours, but students were being released shortly before 4 p.m.

Students at neighboring Mac Williams Middle School were also escorted off campus after temporarily being on lock down.

All after-school activities at both schools were canceled for Monday.