Update [02:55 AM PST]:Addressing the media here outside the Bronx Lebanon Hospital, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio confirmed that two people, including the shooter, are reported to be dead, while six others are injured.
Calling it "a real tragedy" inside "that people associate with care and comfort”, the mayor said the incident is similar to others "we've seen in the country now, [and] we've experienced it here today”.
However, “this was not a terrorist incident; this was a separate incident but it is no less tragic”, de Blasio added. He noted that one doctor was killed in the shooting, while "several doctors" are battling for their lives at present.
de Blasio expressed his condolences "to the family of the doctor who passed away".
"[Of the wounded,] five are in critical condition," Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) James P. O'Neill informed journalists after de Blasio's address.
"A female on the 17th floor was found dead at the scene", while one of the injured "suffered a gunshot wound to the leg", O'Neill stated.
The mayor also explained that the incident "was not just an active shooter situation", which is why he – with regard to the "many acts of heroism" – expressed gratitude to the first responders from NYPD, policemen from the strategic response group, firefighters, officials from state offices, and the hospital personnel, whose day went from normal to tragic in moments.
"There will be an opportunity in the coming hours to provide more information on the incident. There are many, many details we're putting together [currently]; therefore, we cannot answer any questions," de Blasio mentioned.
The first report was a call to 911 at 2:55 PM local time, which stated there was "a lone gunman, armed with an assault rifle" at the "16th floor of the [Bronx Lebanon] hospital",O'Neill informed after de Blasio concluded his speech.
The NYPD Commissioner said the police department's 44th and 66th Precinct sent officers right away, after which an "active shooter protocol, [including] search and evacuation" was commenced.
O'Neill explained that the "fire alarm system activated due to the shooter's attempt to set himself on fire. He was found dead later on the floor, apparently of his self-inflicted gunshot wound".
The "suspect has officially not been identified" yet, although he was wearing a white lab coat when he was found dead, the NYPD Commissioner added.
However, BBC reported as per sources that the suspect was 45-year-old Henry Bello, a former doctor offamily medicine at the hospital. It is unclear why he was let go from the job earlier, but reports from different American media outlets suggest reasons such as resignation over personal reasons and sacking after a sexual harassment case.
This appears "to be a former employee dressed in a hospital jacket similar to what you would see a doctor wearing, who is familiar with the hospital, which makes the situation a lot more problematic," MSNBC quote Bill Bratton former NYPD Police Commissioner as saying.
The New York Times' deputy editor-politics Dean Chang on Twitter said the shooter was 'described as a man in a doctor's lab coat, blue shirt, bald, thin, [and] armed".
It is also unconfirmed as to what type of gun was being used. Various sources allege that it was either an AR 15-type rifle or a military-grade M16 rifle.
Update [02:40 AM PST]: New York Mayor Bill de Blasio starts his address to journalists outside Bronx Lebanon Hospital.
Update [02:22 AM PST]:New York Mayor Bill de Blasio is set to address media here near Bronx Lebanon Hospital.
Initial reporting: NEW YORK: A gunman opened fire inside a New York City hospital on Friday in a burst of violence that injured several people and left the suspect dead, police said, as local media reported at least three doctors were among the wounded.
Few details about the shooting at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital were immediately available from official sources; however, the shooting incident commenced at approximately 2:45 PM local time (12:45 AM PST, Saturday).
The assailant was armed with what appeared to be an M16 assault rifle, state Assemblyman Michael Blake –whose district includes the hospital and was informed by state police –told local television station NY1.
The New York Times, citing information furnished by an unnamed city Fire Department official, reported that three physicians had been shot. Their conditions were unknown as of reporting time.
As least one of the wounded doctors was treated by people inside the hospital who fashioned a tourniquet from an emergency fire hose, according to the official, the Times said.
As many as five or six people may have been wounded, the Times said, citing a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity. It took police some time to secure the area, preventing emergency medical workers from immediately entering, the Times said.
CBS News reported that a gunman – believed to be a former hospital employee –was armed with a rifle and had barricaded himself inside the building.
New York Police Department spokesman Peter Donald posted a message a short time later on Twitter, saying, "One shooter is deceased at the hospital."
The NYPD's official Twitter feed then posted an update saying, "The shooter is deceased. Several others are injured regarding the shooting at Bronx Lebanon Hospital."
On Twitter, the New York Police Department told people to avoid the area around the hospital in the borough of the Bronx at 1650 Grand Concourse.
Police conducted a room-by-room search, telling civilians to turn off the lights and remain in place, according to an account posted on Twitter by Felix Puno, who identified himself as a patient in the radiology department on the fourth floor of the hospital.
A “code silver” warning was issued to the hospital staff informing that a person with a weapon was inside the premises, a physician’s assistant – who did not want to be identified – told New York Post.
"Building is in complete shut down, I was in the middle of getting an x-ray when security alerted us to the active shooter situation," Puno tweeted.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio is reportedly on his way to the crime scene, an update on the mayor's Twitter account stated.
The mayor was briefed earlier on the shooting.
Bronx Lebanon Hospital, about 1.6 kilometres north of Yankee Stadium, describes itself as the largest voluntary, nonprofit health care system serving the South and Central Bronx, as well as among the largest providers of outpatient services in New York City.