Deaths reported after shooting at church in Germany

Fatalities were reported Thursday after shots were fired at a church in Hamburg, Germany, police said.

Authorities said that several people were injured, some fatally, in a shooting at a church on Deelböge street, but they did not provide additional details.

Authorities initially tweeted that there was a large police response in the city’s Alsterdorf district and that officials were still working at the scene.

“So far, there is no reliable information on the motive for the crime,” police tweeted. “We ask that you do not share unsecured assumptions and/or spread rumours.”

Hamburg Mayor Peter Tschentscher tweeted that the reports from police were “shocking” and that authorities were working to track down the perpetrator.

“My deepest condolences to the families of the victims,” Tschentscher said.

An alert was sent out through the German KATWARN system, saying the shooting happened around 9 p.m. local time.

It urged people to avoid the area as authorities block off the area.

Alsterdorf is about 7 miles from downtown Hamburg, the country’s second-largest city. Hamburg’s metropolitan region is home to more than  5 million people, according to the Council of Europe.