Multiple people injured in shooting at Virginia State University

School said shooting involved ‘multiple suspects’ as campus was locked down and police responded to scene

Multiple people were injured in a shooting at Virginia State University (VSU), police said on Saturday morning, with several suspects still at large.

The campus, about 20 miles (32km) south of Richmond, was temporarily put on lockdown as police released initial details about the shooting.

“A shooting occurred in the area of the Quad Annexes involving multiple victims, who were transported to area hospitals,” the VSU police department said in a statement .

VSU said the shooting involved “multiple suspects”. Chesterfield county police, whose jurisdiction includes VSU, said officers discovered five people suffering from gunshot wounds outside campus dormitories when they arrived.

The five victims were transported to hospitals, and one initially listed as having life-threatening injuries was later upgraded to critical condition, county police said. The other victims sustained non-life-threatening injuries, police said.

At least one of the wounded people was confirmed to be a student, according to a VSU statement.

Police told WTVR that police were called to university dormitories at 1.30am.

The campus had a large law enforcement presence on Saturday morning. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the sheriff’s office of adjacent Hanover county were assisting, police said.

After the campus lockdown was lifted, VSU said in a statement that authorities did not believe there was an immediate threat to the school community.

“We recognize the concern this incident has caused among our students, parents, alumni, friends, and the broader VSU community,” the statement said. “The safety and well-being of our students remain our highest priority.”

As of Saturday morning, there had been nearly 300 mass shootings reported across the US so far for the year, according to the Gun Violence Archive .

The nonpartisan resources defines mass shootings as cases in which at least four victims are wounded or killed.

The US has perennially registered high numbers of mass shootings, with a considerable portion of those occurring at school and university campuses or activities. Those numbers have prompted calls for more substantial federal gun control, though Congress over the years has not implemented such restrictions.

The shootings happened just before the start of the academic year at Virginia State. According to the university’s website, residence halls opened for students a week ago, and classes are set to begin on Monday.

Many students had just completed the university’s “New Trojans Experience” for incoming students, an event alluding to the nickname for the school’s athletic teams.

The public university has about 5,700 students, most of whom are undergraduates.

VSU has grown in recent years while attempting to improve safety and retain its historic charm, according to Arthur Fridrich, the university’s former director of distance education, who lives near the campus and visits regularly.

For VSU’s community, a shooting just as students return for classes is heartbreaking, he said.

“To start a new year with this event is very tragic. It casts a shadow in the minds of all students,” he said.

The Associated Press contributed reporting