A female shooter opened fire and left a number of people injured at the headquarters of YouTube in San Bruno, California.
San Bruno Police’s Ed Barberini said a woman found dead with apparently self-inflicted wounds was thought to be the shooter.
“We did locate a victim with what we believe to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. It’s a female,” he said.
Active shooter at YouTube HQ. Heard shots and saw people running while at my desk. Now barricaded inside a room with coworkers.
— Vadim Lavrusik (@Lavrusik) April 3, 2018
I looked down and saw blood drips on the floor and stairs. Peaked around for threats and then we headed downstairs and out the front.
— Todd Sherman (@tdd) April 3, 2018
We are responding to an active shooter. Please stay away from Cherry Ave & Bay Hill Drive.
— San Bruno Police (@SanBrunoPolice) April 3, 2018
Witnesses described seeing blood on the floor and stairs at the suburban office building.
One of those injured in the shooting, a 36-year-old man, was listed in critical condition at San Francisco General Hospital. A 32-year-old woman was listed in serious condition and a 27-year-old woman in fair condition. Authorities did not release the names of any of the victims. A spokesman said the hospital was expecting more patients but does not know their conditions.
A spokeswoman for California’s Stanford Hospital earlier said it had also received a number of casualties from the shooting.
Police officers and US federal agents swarmed the complex as multiple emergency reports came in reporting gunfire. Employees who evacuated the YouTube office and nearby buildings huddled under trees in parking lots. Local television images showed employees walking out of the building with their hands raised.
The White House said US president Donald Trump had been briefed on the shooting.
‘Earthquake’
Todd Sherman, a YouTube product manager, said on Twitter: “We were sitting in a meeting and then we heard people running because it was rumbling the floor. First thought was earthquake.
“At that point every new person I saw was a potential shooter. Someone else said that the person shot out the back doors and then shot themselves.
“I looked down and saw blood drips on the floor and stairs. Peaked around for threats and then we headed downstairs and out the front.”
Sepand Parhami, a YouTube software engineer, said he was having lunch on an outside patio when he heard shots and saw what looked to be a woman moving from a garage to the lobby of the building.
He scrambled for the door and went inside as the woman started shooting, he said in an interview after the incident.
Zach Vorhies, a YouTube software engineer, said he saw a body on the ground with an apparent gunshot wound to the stomach. He said he then saw a police officer coming in with an assault rifle and ran out of the building through a rear exit.
Vadim Lavrusik, a product manager at YouTube, wrote earlier on Twitter that he and coworkers were barricaded inside a room in the building before later tweeting “Safe. Got evacuated. Outside now.”
‘Coordinating’
Google, which owns YouTube, said it was “coordinating with authorities” and would provide more information when it was available.
Last month, YouTube announced it would ban content promoting the sale of guns and gun accessories as well as videos that teach how to make guns.
Officers in San Bruno, which is south of San Francisco, warned people in a Twitter message to stay away from the address where YouTube is based.
City manager Connie Jackson said there were multiple 911 calls reporting a shooting and that police and fire officials responded.
More to follow...