Three people were killed and five others injured on Monday when a gunman opened fire on a college campus in the United States before fleeing, local police said.
The suspect opened fire inside a Michigan State University building shortly after 8 p.m. local time, said Chris Rozman, acting deputy chief of campus police.
The shooter then moved on foot to a nearby building where more shots were fired.
“There are three confirmed deaths,” Michigan State University police said in a statement on Twitter. “This is in addition to the five victims who have been taken to hospital.”
Some of the injured suffered life-threatening injuries, Rozman told reporters.
Police released a photo of the suspect, a short black man wearing red shoes, a denim jacket and a baseball cap.
“We currently have hundreds of police and law enforcement officials – state, local and federal – on campus working in a coordinated effort to provide campus security and identify and apprehend the suspect,” Mr. Rozman.
Police responded quickly to the scene and students and staff were ordered to shelter in place.
Officials said all campus activities would be canceled for the next 48 hours.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer was briefed on the shooting and said police were working to secure the area.
“Tonight let’s wrap our arms around the Spartan community,” she wrote on Twitter, referring to the university’s athletic logo.
School and college shootings are alarmingly common and part of a wider wave of gun violence in the United States, where gun proliferation has skyrocketed in recent years.
