Los Angeles: Three children and a teacher were killed in a shooting at an elementary school in Oregon, United States, on Thursday (local time), police said.

The suspected gunman, identified as a 16-year-old local boy, was also shot dead after reportedly being confronted by a community member inside the school.

The shooting occurred in Bend, a city in the northwestern US state of Oregon, triggering a swift police response after authorities received multiple emergency calls reporting gunfire at the school.

"The deceased at the scene include three children, ages five, eight, and 11, and one teacher," Bend Police Department Chief Mike Krantz told reporters.

Police subsequently identified the suspected attacker as a teenager from the same city.

"We have identified the suspect as a 16-year-old Bend resident," Krantz said, adding that "the suspect had been shot by a community member who had seen the suspect enter the school and pursued him into the school and engaged him."

According to police, the sequence of events began when officers received a report of a gunshot fired into a vehicle. Within minutes, emergency dispatchers received several additional calls warning of an active shooter inside the elementary school.

Bend Police Department spokesperson Sheila Miller said officers reached the scene within minutes of the initial emergency call, which was received around 1 pm local time (2000 GMT).

Shortly after arriving, officers were informed over police radio that "the shooter had been shot and killed."

Authorities initially said they had not established the identity of the person who shot the suspect, indicating that it could have been a bystander.

Police later said a community member had followed the teenager into the school and confronted him, resulting in the suspect being shot.

However, further details about the individual who intervened and the circumstances surrounding the confrontation were not immediately available.

In an earlier statement, police confirmed that "children are among the victims," while reporting that at least two people had been transported to a nearby hospital.

"Their status at this time is not known."

Authorities have not disclosed the identities of the deceased or provided details about a possible motive for the shooting.

The incident adds to the continuing toll of gun violence in the United States, where shootings at schools and other public places have repeatedly raised concerns over firearm access and public safety.

The country records thousands of firearm-related deaths annually and has the highest rate of gun-related deaths among developed nations.

The deadliest school shooting in US history occurred at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, when South Korean student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before taking his own life.

According to the Gun Violence Archive, the United States has recorded more than 360 mass shootings so far in 2026.

The organisation defines a mass shooting as an incident in which at least four people are shot, excluding the perpetrator.

Thursday's attack in Oregon has once again brought attention to the persistent problem of gun violence in the United States, particularly the safety of children and teachers in educational institutions.