Three, including gunman, killed in Florida shooting

Miami: Three people were killed in a mass shooting at a video game tournament in the northern Florida city of Jacksonville, police have said, with the gunman among the dead.

"There were three deceased individuals at the scene, one of those being the suspect, who took his own life," Sheriff Mike Williams told a news conference yesterday, naming the suspect as 24-year-old David Katz from Baltimore, Maryland.

"There were nine victims transported by JFRD (local fire and rescue) to area hospitals. Some of those have gunshot wounds. There were two additional gunshot victims that self-transported themselves to local hospitals."

Madden is a hugely popular multi-player video game based on the National Football League.

According to the LA Times, quoting player Steven "Steveyj" Javaruski, the shooter was a gamer who had been competing and lost.

In subsequent tweets, police said they were still searching The Landing entertainment and shopping complex, where the tournament -- a regional qualifier for finals in Las Vegas with a $25,000 prize -- was being held at the GLHF Game Bar.

They urged people hiding in locked areas of the complex to stay in place and call 911 to make their location known.

In disturbing footage apparently captured as part of a livestream on the video game streaming website Twitch, several gunshots could be heard in the background, before the stream disconnected. Twitch removed the video, but it remained available on social media.

CompLexity Gaming, one of the gaming teams, said its player Young Drini was grazed on the hand.

"We're obviously shocked and saddened by this afternoon's events. Our player, Drini, was hit in the thumb but is going to be fine. He managed to escape and run down the street to a nearby gym," director Jason Lake told AFP.

"I will never take anything for granted ever again. Life can be cut short in a second," Drini tweeted.

Several social media users, including one claiming to be his mother, reported that the prominent professional gamer known as "oLARRY2K" had been shot in the chest.

Survivors of the high school shooting in Parkland, Florida, in February, expressed sorrow at news of another mass shooting in the state.

"Once again, my heart hurts and all of me is so angry. We cannot accept this as our reality," Delaney Tarr, one of the organizers of the student-led March for Our Lives movement, tweeted.

Florida Governor Rick Scott confirmed he had offered state support in the aftermath of the shooting.