BEDFORD – First thing Monday morning, a group of psychologists and counselors arrived at Riddle Brook Elementary School prepared for what was likely one of the most challenging tasks of their respective careers: Explaining the deaths over the weekend of their 8-year-old classmate, her little sister and their mother.

The state Attorney General’s office Monday afternoon confirmed that Katherine Obukhov, a Riddle Brook third-grader, and Elizabeth Obukhov, 6, who attended private kindergarten, were shot to death Saturday by their mother, Nina Obukhov, 34, who then turned the gun on herself.

Autopsies performed Sunday by Chief state Medical Examiner Thomas A. Andrew determined that the three each died of a gunshot wound to the head. The girls’ deaths have been ruled homicides, officials said.

They said late Monday that while Nina Obukhov’s manner of death was still pending, the incident appears to be a murder-suicide in which Nina Obukhov shot and killed the girls then took her own life.

Neighbors who spoke with media representatives Sunday said Alexey and Nina Obukhov and their two girls had lived at 17 McAfee Farm Road for a few years.

While authorities haven’t linked Alexey Obukhov, 54, directly to the deaths, his whereabouts remained unknown as of Monday.

On Saturday, roughly 3-4 hours after the bodies were found, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s office issued an “officer safety” bulletin advising area and regional police agencies to be on the lookout for a maroon BMW 850i coupe, the driver of which they identified as Alexey Obukhov and described him as “a subject of interest in a murder-suicide that may have occurred” at the home.

Superintendent of Schools Chip McGee said Monday that representatives of the Attorney General’s office called him Saturday afternoon because, they told him, the incident was going to “impact the school district.”

“They didn’t tell me exactly what happened, just that three suspicious deaths had occurred at the address and that the Crisis Response Team would be contacting me,” McGee said, referring to the team of experts affiliated with the Attorney General’s office.

“By Saturday evening, we had a plan,” he said. “We had seven additional counselors on hand, and the facilitator from the AG’s office brought in two more.”

McGee said a school psychologist who works with the district on a contractual basis also came in on Monday, and arranged for a counselor from each of the town’s other two elementary schools to spend their day at Riddle Brook.

Having the extra counselors on hand, McGee said, made it possible to accommodate anyone – a teacher, staff member or student – who felt they could use the extra support and professional guidance.

“We had enough (counselors) that we were able to do that,” he said. “It was very helpful.”

McGee praised Riddle Brook principal Molly McCarthy for taking on a large amount of the planning and coordination for Monday.

“She made sure we were organized,” he said, adding that McCarthy, like every administrator and teacher in the district, made the students’ well-being a priority even as they dealt with their own emotions.

Perhaps most affected was the teacher in Katherine Obukhov’s third-grade classroom.

“Katie’s teacher had quite a day today, as did the kids in her class,” McGee said in his office at the SAU 25 administration building on County Road.

“All I can say is she was a star today, how she made things as normal as she could for her kids,” added McGee, who didn’t identify the teacher by name.

A big help in preparing for Monday was an hour-long conference call Sunday that McGee held with all the district’s administrators and principals.

Calling the discussion “very valuable,” McGee said one of the main points the counselors raised when they prepped teachers for the day was to try and “make the day as normal as possible” for the students.

“Not to ignore what happened or to minimize this tragedy, but normal routines are better immediately after things like this happen,” he said, referring to the counselors’ advice. Teachers and staff were also advised to not let the topic become the focus of discussion during school.

The pall of grief and disbelief that descended upon the Obukhovs’ upscale neighborhood Saturday afternoon and evening had, by Monday, enveloped not only the schools, but most of the community.

“It’s just so sad, two little girls,” said Dee Morgan, a clerk at the Irving gas station and convenience store on Route 101 that’s just minutes from the scene of the tragedy.

Morgan said the store has a number of regular customers who, like the Obukhovs, are of Russian descent, as well as others who are Ukrainian. While she didn’t recognize the name, Morgan said she’d probably recognize Nina Obukhov by sight.

Meanwhile, McGee said that while things went as smoothly as could be expected on Monday, the tragedy’s aftereffects are by no means winding down.

“Our first step was to get through Monday, then we’ll see where we need to go from there,” he said. “We’ll need some availability for months, perhaps for years,” he said, referring to counselors.

Dean Shalhoup can be reached at 594-6443, dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com or @Telegraph_DeanS.