In a tragic event characterized by domestic violence, eight children, ranging from one to 14 years old, lost their lives in a mass shooting in Louisiana. Local authorities reported that the shooter was killed by police during a subsequent vehicle pursuit.

According to Christopher Bordelon, spokesperson for the Shreveport Police Department, seven of the children’s bodies were discovered inside a residence, while an eighth child was fatally shot while attempting to escape via the rooftop, as reported by KTBS TV.

Authorities confirmed that a total of 10 individuals were shot during the incident.

Initial investigations suggest that the sequence of events began when the suspect shot a woman before proceeding to a nearby home where the children resided, as noted in a Facebook update from Shreveport police.

Bordelon described the scene as “incredibly gruesome” in his interview with KTBS.

The suspect has been identified as Shamar Elkins, according to Leigh Anne Evensky, the director of communications for the Shreveport mayor’s office, in a statement to Reuters.

The shooting occurred just after 6am on Sunday local time (9pm AEST), Bordelon said.

“This is a tragic situation, maybe the worst tragic situation we’ve ever had,” Shreveport mayor Tom Arceneaux said.

A comprehensive domestic violence centre is being established by the Caddo Parish sheriff, which the mayor’s office is working to support, Arceneaux later told Reuters.

At a news conference, Louisiana state senator Sam Jenkins, whose district includes much of Shreveport, said the shooting underscores the need for more resources to combat domestic violence.

“If we have someone with a history of domestic violence, let’s make sure that those resources, that intervention is there on a continuous and consistent basis, hopefully to avoid what we’ve seen here today,” Jenkins said.

Reuters was unable to immediately determine whether Elkins had such a history.

US House of Representatives speaker Mike Johnson, a Shreveport native, on social media called the shooting a “heartbreaking tragedy.” Louisiana governor Jeff Landry said on social media that he and his wife were “praying for everyone affected.”

Not including Sunday’s incident in Shreveport, the Gun Violence Archive lists at least 119 mass shootings in the United States this year, resulting in 117 deaths, including 79 children, and 458 people injured.

The archive defines a mass shooting as an incident in which at least four people, not including the shooter, are injured or killed by gunfire.

The United States had 407 mass shootings last year, according to archive data.

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