Monterey Park-Los Angeles-January 22, 2023

Reporting by Maria Vasilyeva; Writing by Raissa Kasolowsky; Editing by Frances Kerry

Nine people were killed in a mass shooting in the California city of Monterey Park late on Saturday, the Los Angeles County Police Department said.

The shooting took place after 10 pm (0600 GMT on Sunday) around the site of a celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year held in Monterey Park, US media reported.

Footage posted on social media showed injured people on stretchers being transferred by emergency personnel to ambulances. Around the place of the shooting - it was reportedly in a dance club - the police guarded the cordoned-off streets

"Our hearts go out to those who lost loved ones tonight in our neighboring city, Monterey Park, where a mass shooting just took place,"Los Angeles City Comptroller Kenneth Mejia said in a tweet on Twitter.

Tens of thousands of people had attended the festival earlier in the day.

The Los Angeles Times quoted a nearby restaurateur as saying that people who took refuge on his property told him that there was a man with a machine gun in the area.

Sung Won Choi told the newspaper he believed the shooting took place at a dance club.

Monterey Park is a city in Los Angeles County, about 7 miles (11 km) from downtown Los Angeles.