3 Killed in Shooting at University of Nevada, Las Vegas

A shooter opened fire at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, on Wednesday, leaving three people dead and one critically injured, the authorities said. The suspect died after a confrontation with the police.

Those on campus were under a lockdown as the campus police investigated reports of gunfire at Frank and Estella Beam Hall, a business school building, and the nearby student union.

Sheriff Kevin McMahill of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said at a brief news conference on Wednesday afternoon that officers received a call about shots fired at 11:45 a.m., and that officers had responded immediately and “engaged the suspect” and that the suspect was deceased. He did not say whether the suspect had been shot by the police.

There is “no further threat,” Sheriff McMahill said, adding that a motive for the shooting was unclear. The police said more updates would be provided later in the evening.

A reunification center was set up at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Speaking to local news outlets, students described a quiet afternoon that quickly turned chaotic, with multiple rounds of gunfire and a speedy police response to campus. Students were well trained to shelter in place, and many were still in classrooms and other areas of campus more than an hour after initial reports of a shooter on campus.

Several dozen students with backpacks were seen being escorted off campus by police.

The university said that people on campus should continue to shelter in place as the police evacuated buildings one by one.

The shooting came ahead of final exams, which were scheduled to begin at the university next week. During the news conference, the authorities made references to “1 October,” the date of the mass shooting in 2017 at a country music festival in Las Vegas that left 58 people dead and hundreds more wounded in what remains the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history.

After Wednesday’s shooting, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and other public colleges and universities in southern Nevada closed for the rest of the day. The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop at Harry Reid Airport, about two miles from the campus, “due to security.” It was unclear if the ground stop was related to the shooting.

Mayor Carolyn G. Goodman of Las Vegas said on social media that news of the shooting was “tragic and heartbreaking.”

Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said that shooting was being monitored. She did not have any additional details.

Remy Tumin and Lola Fadulu contributed reporting.