Sydney: Several people are reported to have been injured after shots were fired at the world famous Bondi beach in New South Wales (NSW), Australia, on Sunday.
According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), NSW Police are responding to reports of an active shooter at Bondi Beach in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
In a post on social media, the police called it a “developing incident”, urging people to avoid the area.
“Anyone at the scene should take shelter. Police are on scene and more information will be provided when it comes to hand,” the police said.
“We are still asking people in the area to take shelter until we can determine what is happening,” the statement added.
Emergency services have also arrived at the scene, ABC reported.
It also said that vision from the grass area at the beach showed a frantic and horrific scene with multiple people lying on the ground in
jured as paramedics work on them.
People could be seen running away from the area, whole others had bandages on their heads. Some others were spotted covered in blood.
Elizabeth Mealey, a former journalist and Randwick resident, was quoted as saying that she was having dinner in the Icebergs restaurant when they heard shots ring out.
“We thought it was fireworks, but it wasn’t it was something much worse,” she told ABC.
“People started running right up the beach it was panic and the panic spread to Icebergs and people are standing around still not knowing what’s going on, so it’s scary,” she said.
Elizabeth said she could not see the shooter, but it sounded like it was coming from somewhere near to the Bondi Pavilion.
“It felt like it took a long time to hear a siren, we’ve got a helicopter coming in now and ambulance is arriving, it’s pandemonium and we really don’t know what’s happening,” she added.
She saw people running from north Bondi to the south end to get away from what they could hear.
“We did hear what sounded like another type of gunfire, eventually which we were hoping and assuming it was police shooting back. And after that went a bit quieter but still kept up but at this point, we are assuming it’s over, but no one really knows. It’s terrifying,” she noted.