Four people are dead after a gunman opened fire in northern California at several locations, including an elementary school, police have said.
The shooting broke out at a home in the rural community of Rancho Tehama, about 120 miles (195km) from Sacramento, on Tuesday morning.
Police say the gunman was shot and killed by law enforcement after four others were killed in the rampage.
Officials believe the shootings started as a “domestic violence” incident.
The shooting began at a home in Tehama County and later moved to the exterior Rancho Tehama Elementary school, according to police.
The gunman appeared to be “randomly picking targets”, Tehama County Assistant Sheriff Phil Johnston told the Los Angeles Times newspaper.
Mr Johnston said “a number” of students had been medically evacuated from the school in Rancho Tehama, a subdivision community of about 1,500 people.
“We have about 100 law enforcement personnel in Rancho Tehama right now, with multiple, multiple scenes,” Mr Johnston told the newspaper.
A student at the elementary school was shot and another child was hit in a truck along a road, Mr Johnston said. A woman driving the truck was also struck and all three were being treated for injuries, he said.
A semi-automatic rifle and two handguns were recovered from one of the crime scenes, police said.
The gunman, who police have yet to identify, was involved in a “domestic violence incident” that was reported by neighbours before the shooting rampage, Mr Johnston added.
The Redding Record Searchlight newspaper spoke to a man who said he was a neighbour of the unidentified gunman.
Brian Flint said his neighbour “has been shooting a lot of bullets lately, hundreds of rounds, large magazines”.
“We made it aware [to police] that this guy is crazy and he’s been threatening us,” he told the newspaper.
California Governor Jerry Brown issued a statement saying he and his wife were “saddened to hear about today’s violence in Tehama County”.
“We offer our condolences to the families who lost loved ones and unite with all Californians in grief.”
Source: bbc.co.uk
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