At least 13 people have been wounded, two critically, after a shooting in the US city of Austin, Texas.
Gunfire erupted just before 1:25am (06:25 GMT) on Saturday along Sixth Street, a popular area filled with bars and restaurants.
The street was barricaded to keep out vehicles at the time of the shooting, Austin Police Department Interim Chief Joseph Chacon said.
“Our officers responded very quickly,” added Chacon.
“They were able to immediately begin life-saving measures for many of these patients, including applications of tourniquets; applications of chest seals.”
Chacon also said some officers transported patients to hospitals in their police cruisers due to the nature of the scene, where it was hard to contain the crowd and get ambulances to those who were injured.
Eleven of the wounded were taken to one local hospital and the other two were taken to other hospitals, the chief said.
The shooter was not immediately arrested. It was unclear what sparked the shooting.
Chacon said the description that police had of the suspect was “not very detailed” but said the person was believed to be a man.
Investigators were reviewing surveillance video and other evidence from the area, Chacon said.
In a statement on Saturday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott said the Texas Department of Public Safety was working with Austin police “to respond to this shooting and ensure that the perpetrators are captured and punished to the fullest extent of the law”.
The incident is the latest in a recent string of mass shootings across the United States.
US President Joe Biden has called gun violence “a national embarrassment” and urged stricter gun control laws – though such efforts are staunchly opposed by many Republican legislators and gun lobby groups.
In recent years, Democrats have called for universal background checks, which are broadly popular among Americans, as well as a ban on military-style “assault” weapons, but conservatives remain steadfastly against strict, new gun control measures.
Biden in April announced a series of executive actions to try to stem gun violence.
The Gun Violence Archive, a US non-profit, says 610 mass shootings were reported in 2020, up from 417 the previous year and 336 in 2018. The group defines a mass shooting as any incident in which four or more people are shot or killed, not including the attacker.
