At least two people are confirmed dead where the Women's World Cup is kicking off.
At least two people were fatally shot and six more were injured in a mass shooting early Thursday morning in Auckland, New Zealand, the site of the Women's World Cup.
According to multiple reports, the U.S. Women's National Team is confirmed to be safe, after a gunman opened fire at approximately 7:22 a.m. local time inside a building where the male shooter was eventually shot dead by police. Police said the shooting is "an isolated incident" and it did not pose a national security risk.
Reports say the gunman moved inside a building still under construction on Lower Queen Street in downtown Auckland, where he was seen discharging his firearm. According to CNN, the gunman contained himself within the elevator shaft where police attempted to engage him.
The Women's World Cup kicks off later in the day, with the host team facing Norway in the opening match.
"Clearly with the FIFA World Cup kicking off this evening, there are a lot of eyes on Auckland," New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said. "The government has spoken to FIFA organizers this morning and the tournament will proceed as planned. i want to reiterate that there is no wider national security threat. This appears to be the action of one individual."
According to ESPN, Norway's team is staying at a hotel near the scene of the tragedy.
"Everyone probably woke up quite quickly when the helicopter hovered outside the hotel window and a large number of emergency vehicles arrived," Norway's captain Maren Mieldeb said. "At first we didn't know what was going on, but eventually there were updates on TV and the local media. We felt safe the whole time. FIFA has a good security system at the hotel, and we have our own security officer in the squad. Everyone seems calm and we are preparing as normal for the game tonight. Then we may have to adapt if there are any instructions from the authorities."
The U.S. women’s team kicks things off Friday night in group play against Vietnam in Auckland.
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