At least five people have been killed and an additional six people injured in a mass shooting at a bank in Louisville, Kentucky this morning (Monday), police said.
A large police force was called to the Old National Bank in downtown Louisville, where the shooting occurred.
Multiple gunshots can be heard in video posted to social media from the scene. In addition, broken glass and medical equipment can be seen on the ground.
Police have confirmed that the suspected shooter is dead. It is currently unknown whether the shooter is included among the reported casualties or how the suspect died.
The Democratic governor of Louisville, Andy Bashir, who previously spoke out in favor of banning the sale of firearms, said that he lost close friends in the shooting incident. "It's terrible. I have a very close friend who didn't survive today, and I have another close friend in the hospital, and I hope he gets better. I hope people pray for him. There are a lot of people hurt today. If we have a place to focus our energy, I hope it's It will be to surround them with the love and compassion that we were so good at showing each other," Bashir said.
The incident in Louisville is the 146th mass shooting in the US this year.
Paul Humphrey, deputy chief of the Louisville Police Department, told reporters outside the bank that officers arrived within three minutes of the call and immediately confronted the shooter. "They totally saved people's lives. It was the heroic response of the police officers that caused no more people to be seriously injured in the incident."
He said that at least one of the officers was seriously injured in the incident, while the other officer was not in danger. The bank employees said that they had to take cover inside the bank's safe room immediately after the gunman started shooting, and the police had to break into the bank, which was locked.
President Joe Biden condemned the mass shooting at a bank in Louisville, tweeting that "Once again, our nation mourns the aftermath of a senseless act of gun violence. Jill and I pray for the lives lost and those affected by today's shooting. Too many Americans are paying with their lives the price of inaction. When will Republicans in Congress act to protect our communities?"