At least 14 people have been killed and as many as 20 wounded when at least one person opened fire at a social services agency in the southern California city of San Bernardino.
MSNBC reported that law enforcement authorities confirmed the three deaths, and a reporter for the local NBC affiliate said he saw three bodies following the shooting rampage.
The San Bernardino Police Department said on Twitter that it had "confirmed 1 to 3 possible suspects" and multiple victims in the shooting.
The agency called it an "active shooter" incident.
The San Bernardino Fire Department said in a tweet that it was responding to reports of 20 victims.
San Bernardino is about 10 km east of Los Angeles.
A police spokeswoman told the Los Angeles Times that the suspects were heavily armed and possibly wearing body armour, and CBS reported that a bomb squad was on the scene, trying to defuse what was believed to be an explosive device.
US President Barack Obama was briefed and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said on Twitter, "I refuse to accept this as normal. We must take action to stop gun violence now".
The shooting took place at the Inland Regional Center, one of 21 facilities serving people with developmental disabilities run by the state, said Nancy Lungren, spokeswoman for the California Department of Developmental Services.
Television images on CNN showed people being evacuated from the building, their arms raised, as triage stations were set up outside. Police and SWAT teams were seen surrounding the building.
A spokeswoman from nearby Loma Linda Medical Center said the hospital was expecting patients any time.
"We're all kind of on standby right now - it could be any minute," spokeswoman Briana Pastorino said
The shooting in California comes less than a week after a gunman killed three people and wounded nine in a shooting rampage at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs.
In October, a gunman killed nine people at a college in Oregon and in June a white gunman killed nine black churchgoers in South Carolina.
San Bernardino police Sergeant Vicki Cervantes told KCBS-TV that "there are multiple casualties and there are some confirmed fatalities." She says she doesn't have specific numbers.
She told the television station that it appears there was more than one shooter. She believes they were wearing "military-style" attire.
The centre was hosting event when more than one gunman in "military style" attire burst into room and began firing.
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