A gunman has opened fire at a mosque in New Zealand as people gathered for prayers, sparking a hunt for an "active" shooter in the South Island town of Christchurch.
New Zealand Police have stormed the area and are urging anyone in the area to stay indoors.
In response to "a serious ongoing firearms incident", police said all schools have been placed in lock-down.
Police Commissioner Mike Bush said, "a serious and evolving situation was occurring in Christchurch with an active shooter".
ABC News quoted eyewitness reports that up to 30 people were either dead or injured, but stressed that the figures were unconfirmed.
The local police have also cleared Cathedral Square, where .
"Police are currently responding to reports of shots fired in central Christchurch," the police said in a statement.
Several hundred people were inside the mosque at the time and witnesses reported seeing at least four people on the ground and "blood everywhere", according to Radio New Zealand.
The former president of the Muslim Association of Canterbury Mohammed Jama said a man with a gun went into the mosque about 1.40pm on Friday, stuff.co.nz reported.
He said he saw about four people injured and two people lying on the ground and did not know if they were alive or dead.
Lisa Davies, in Christchurch, told the ABC "it's just a continuous stream of sirens".
"We've probably seen 10 ambulances. I've lost count of the number of police cars, but obviously all the police on these cordons are heavily armed and trying to keep the public out of the scene, keep them safe until they know exactly what's happened here, and that they've managed to apprehend the alleged gunman," she said.
A nearby business owner told stuff.co.nz that a lot of people were praying at the mosque at the time of the incident.
"I heard 20 or more gunshots I thought something happened and the people were running on the other side of Deans Avenue and now I can see so many police," the business owner said.
One man said the scene at the mosque was chaotic.
"I heard a big sound of the gun. And a second one, I ran. Lots of people were sitting on the floor. I ran behind the mosque," he told TVNZ.
"The floor. There's lots of blood on the floor, you can see when you go in."
The man, who did not give his name said he saw four people on the floor but did not see the shooter.
