Four killed, 12 wounded as gunfire erupts after high-school football game in Mississippi

Police are hunting suspects after gunfire broke out near a homecoming event in the small town of Leland

Four people were killed and 12 others injured -- four critically -- in a mass shooting in the US state of Mississippi, according to a BBC report.

The shooting took place around midnight on the main street in Leland, a small town about 120 miles (190km) north-east of Jackson, the state capital, Leland Mayor John Lee told the BBC.

He said four of the injured victims were airlifted to hospital. No arrests have yet been made, and police have launched a manhunt.

The town was crowded that night for a high school football game marking homecoming -- an annual US celebration that welcomes back former students. Mayor Lee confirmed the shooting did not occur on the Leland High School campus.

“This is an event we’ve held for years without any such incident,” Lee told the BBC, calling it a tragedy for a close-knit town of about 3,700 people. “We all get along, and everybody knows everybody.”