At least nine people were wounded after a gunman opened fire on shoppers at an outlet mall north of Dallas, Texas.

Hundreds of people were evacuated from the mall in the city of Allen, as eyewitnesses described a man firing indiscriminately at passers-by.

Police said they shot the gunman dead, but were unable to say how many people had died in the incident.

Some of the victims are thought to be children. Blood could be seen on pavements outside the mall.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott described the shooting as an "unspeakable tragedy" and said the state was ready to offer any assistance to local authorities.

One eyewitness, Fontayne Payton, told the AP news agency he heard gunshots though his headphones as he shopped at H&M.

When people were allowed to leave the mall, he described seeing bodies outside.

"I pray it wasn't kids, but it looked like kids," he said. "It broke me when I walked out to see that."

There have been at least 198 mass shootings - in which four or more people were killed or wounded - in the US so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

Earlier this week police in Texas arrested a man accused of shooting dead five neighbours, including a nine-year-old boy.

Francisco Oropesa was found hiding in a cupboard after a four-day manhunt.

Source:
courtesy of BBC NEWS

by Robert Greenall

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