Multiple people fatally shot at a Walmart in Virginia

RICHMOND, Virginia Multiple people were shot and killed inside a Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia, on Tuesday night, the authorities said, the second high-profile mass shooting in the United States in three days.

The shooter, whose name the authorities did not release, was found dead at the store, Mr Leo Kosinski, a spokesman with the Chesapeake Police Department, said in a brief news conference.

Mr Kosinski did not say exactly how many people had been fatally shot, but said he believed it was less than 10.

The police department responded to a report of a shooting inside the Walmart supercentre at about 10pm, Mr Kosinski said, about 45 minutes before the store was scheduled to close.

He added that when officers entered the store, they found multiple fatalities and multiple injured individuals.

Mr Kosinski said investigators did not know if the shooter was an employee or whether he had died by suicide.

He added that he did not believe any shots had been fired by police officers.

Walmart said in a statement on Wednesday morning that we are shocked at this tragic event.

Were praying for those impacted, the community and our associates, the company said. Were working closely with law enforcement, and we are focused on supporting our associates.

Mr Kosinski said: I mean, its sad, you know were a couple of days before the Thanksgiving holiday.

The Thanksgiving holiday falls on Nov 24 this year.

In a shooting over the weekend, five people were killed at an LGBTQ club in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Earlier this month in Charlottesville, Virginia, three members of the University of Virginia football team were killed by a former football player, who opened fire in a garage, the authorities said.

Photos and videos from the scene of the Walmart shooting showed officers huddling around the entrance of the building, with numerous police vehicles parked in the large carpark of the store.

A large inflatable Santa Claus stood outside the store. Embed Twitter Tweet URL Embed Twitter Tweet URL Mr Kosinski said that officers were searching for more victims inside the Walmart shortly after midnight on Wednesday.

He noted that the large store had a lot of hiding spots for shoppers who had possibly sought cover during the shooting.

People could get scared, they could be hiding, Mr Kosinski said. We want to make sure that everyone is accounted for.

The authorities directed relatives of people affected by the shooting to the Chesapeake Conference Centre.

Local TV stations reported that a chaplain would be there. More On This Topic Suspect in Colorado nightclub shooting moved from hospital to jail I lost friends, says patron who fled Colorado club shooting The Walmart supercentre where the shooting occurred is one of several in south-eastern Virginia.

It includes a grocery store, a pharmacy, a bank, a bakery and a deli, among other businesses.

Mr Kosinski told reporters that the Walmart was very, very large, although he did not know the square footage.

Chesapeake had a population of about a quarter of a million people last year, according to the US Census Bureau. It is near Virginias Atlantic coast and the border with North Carolina.

Senator Mark Warner said in a statement that he was sickened by reports of yet another mass shooting.

Ms L. Louise Lucas, a Virginia state senator, said on Twitter that she was absolutely heartbroken that Americas latest mass shooting took place in a Walmart in my district in Chesapeake.

I will not rest, she said, until we find the solutions to end this gun violence epidemic in our country that has taken so many lives. NYTIMES More On This Topic Suspect in Colorado nightclub shooting moved from hospital to jail Texas school shooting: What's behind America's deadly fascination with guns?