A shooting incident at a California bowling alley has left three men dead and four injured, police said.
The Torrance Police Department responded to calls of "shots fired" at the Gable House Bowl shortly before midnight.
Reports of shots fired with multiple victims down. T P D is on scene. Investigation is ongoing. Please stay away from the area.
— Torrance Police (@TorrancePD) January 5, 2019
Multiple victims were found with gunshot wounds inside Gable House Bowl, which is described on its website as a gaming venue that offers bowling, laser tag and a full arcade.
Police said three men died at the scene and four male victims were injured, two of whom were transported to a local hospital with unknown injuries.
The other two injured victims sought out their own medical attention.
Authorities have not released details about what led to the shooting, but witnesses said it stemmed from a fight between two large groups of people at the bowling alley.
Dwayne Edwards (60) said he received a call from his nephew that his 28-year-old son Astin Edwards was one of those killed.
His nephew told him his son was attempting to break up a fight when a gunman “just started unloading”.
Mr Edwards said: “I’m thinking this is a dream and I’ll wake up. He was a good kid. I don’t understand it.”
Angeline Hubbard said her 28-year-old son Robert Meekins was also among those killed. She said her son was a friend of Astin Edwards, and she believed he also tried to help break up the fight.
“They were friends so I know he probably jumped in and helped Astin and whoever he was with . . . but I don’t think my son deserves to die,” she said.
Witness accounts
Wes Hamad, a 29-year-old Torrance resident, was at the bowling alley with his 13-year-old niece and cousin when he saw a “huge fight” break out.
Mr Hamad said the brawl, which lasted about five minutes, blocked the entrance of Gable House Bowl and “descended into complete chaos”.
“I grabbed my niece and started running towards the far end of the bowling alley,” he said.
“As we were running, we heard 15 shots.”
As he was leaving, Mr Hamad said he saw a woman weeping over a man who had multiple gunshot wounds in his head and neck.
Other customers described a fight before the gunshots rang out.
"We just ran into the bar and we just took cover because after the fight we heard: 'Pop! Pop!'" Gable House Bowl patron Jesus Perez told the Los Angeles Times.
Torrance is a suburb of Los Angeles, about 40km south of the city centre. – Agencies