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, police said on Saturday morning, with several suspects still at large.

The campus, about 20 miles (32km) south of Richmond, was on lockdown when 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. Police are on scene and request that you avoid the area,” the VSU police department said in a statement .

VSU said the shooting involved “multiple suspects”. The university said none of the injuries appear to be life-threatening.

Local news outlet WTVR reported that five people were injured, citing local authorities. Chesterfield police told WTVR that police were called to university dormitories at 1.30am.

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.