Two people have been killed after multiple people were shot at a top American university.
Students at Brown University were told to "run" or "fight" amid reports of "multiple victims" on Saturday night.
US media outlets had initially reported the number of people shot as 20.
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley then confirmed two had been killed and eight had been critically injured.
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Mr Smiley added that police were still searching for the gunman.
The Ivy League school had been placed under strict lockdown as shots rang out - with an emergency message broadcast to those on the ground and legions of police seen on scene.
The "BrownUAlert" text message said an active shooter was at large near an engineering building.
School officials said they were trying to work out who was inside at the time of the shooting.
Students at Brown University were told to 'run' or 'fight' amid reports of 'multiple victims' on Saturday night
|REUTERS
The block includes 117 laboratories, 150 offices and 15 classrooms.
The shooting is said to have unfolded just as students were taking their final exams.
Brown is home to more than 11,000 students - and all of its first-year undergraduates live on campus.
Rather than the standard "run, hide, tell" messaging in place for potential terror attacks in Britain, students were told "RUN, HIDE, FIGHT".
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PICTURED: Emergency services swarm the scene at Brown University as shots rang out
|WPRI
Initial reports had hinted that the suspect was in custody.
But then, President Donald Trump intervened to confirm: "Brown University Police reversed their previous statement - The suspect is NOT in custody."
Mr Trump then said at the White House that he'd been briefed on the situation, which he called "terrible."
"All we can do right now is pray for the victims and for those that were very badly hurt," he said.
PICTURED: A police vehicle drives past police tape lying in the street after the shooting at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island
|REUTERS
In Rhode Island, Kristy DosReis, the city of Providence's chief public information officer for public safety, said: "There have been multiple people shot... It continues to be an active investigation and we are urging people to shelter in place."
And speaking to GB News, former CIA operative Michael Waller warned: "If he's still on the loose, he could be anywhere.
"It's a very dense metropolitan area between Boston, New York and even Washington, DC. It is the night before Hanukkah starts.
"We have no idea what the motive is, but we do know that there's a lot of people on the ground and a lot of people in danger as long as he's at large," Mr Waller said.
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