Nine people were killed in a shooting in Erie, Pennsylvania, on Friday, according to Governor Josh Shapiro. The suspected shooter was among the dead.

Police were called to the city around 5:00 p.m. local time (21:00 GMT) following reports of shots fired. Officers arrived to find two women dead in the street.

The attacker then barricaded himself inside a nearby home as police surrounded the building and ordered him to come out. More gunshots were heard during the standoff.

When officers eventually entered the building, they found several more victims inside, including two children. The attacker was found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to police.

Erie is located 188 kilometres (117 miles) north of Pittsburgh.

"I have not seen anything like this in my 28-plus years," Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah told a local news station on Saturday. "I'm not sure that the city of Erie has ever seen the loss of life and the devastation that we just witnessed."

Lorah declined to provide further details but described the circumstances of the shooting as "deeply disturbing."

Officers who responded to the scene were offered counselling following the incident.

Governor Shapiro said on Saturday that he had offered his administration's "full support" to Erie Mayor Daria Devlin.