A total of eight children have been killed following a shooting in Louisiana - victims of the shooting on Sunday morning in the US ranged from one to 12 years old

Eight children have been killed following the deadliest US shooting in two years, in what Louisiana police say was a "domestic disturbance".

Police in the US said they were called to Shreveport at around 6am on Sunday. Victims of the shooting ranged from one to 12 years old.

A total of 10 people were shot, according to Shreveport police spokesperson Chris Bordelon. Authorities are still gathering details about the crime scene, which extended across three locations.

The ordeal unfolded on Sunday morning and saw the gunman approach one address in Shreveport. This was where the terrible massacre took place, reports say.

The suspected shooter has been named locally as Shamar Elkins.

Police said Elkins then drove to Harrison Street around a quarter of a mile away. He was followed there by police in a high-speed chase after carrying out a carjacking. Elkins then drove to a third location where he was shot and killed by cops.

Police told KSLA that Elkins, 31, is believed to be the father of some of the victims. A total of 10 people were shot, with two women surviving the horrific ordeal. One of the female victims is reported to have suffered life-threatening injuries and is believed to have been shot in the head.

Bordelon said some of the children shot were related to the suspect, who was fatally shot by police during a vehicle chase.

"This is an extensive scene, unlike anything most of us have ever seen," Bordelon added.

At a news conference outside the residence where one of the shootings occurred, officials appeared stunned, requesting patience and prayers from the community as they sorted through multiple crime scenes.

“I just don’t know what to say, my heart is just taken aback,” Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith said. “I cannot begin to imagine how such an event could occur.”

“This is a tragic situation — maybe the worst tragic situation we’ve ever had,” said Tom Arceneaux, mayor of the city in northwestern Louisiana with about 180,000 residents. “It’s a terrible morning.”

Liza Demming, who lives two houses down from where one of the attacks happened, said her security camera captured video of the suspect running away along with the sound of two shots.

“That’s pretty much all I saw, was him running out of the house and the cars leaving,” she said.

Ms Demming later went outside and saw the covered body of a child on the home’s roof. She said she did not know the gunman’s name.

“He looks like the dad that comes over here,” she said, adding that he was just with the children a few days ago.

Shreveport Police has asked Louisiana State Police detectives to investigate.

No offices were harmed in the shooting that involved an officer after a police pursuit into Bossier City on Sunday morning.

It was the deadliest mass shooting in the US since eight people were killed in a Chicago suburb in January 2024, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University.

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry said in a statement that he and his wife were heartbroken. “We’re deeply grateful to the law enforcement officers and first responders working tirelessly on the scene,” he added.