Pearl Harbor shooting: Two dead as gunman opens fire at Hawaii military base

Shooter 'has tentatively been identified as an active duty sailor' with US Navy, says official

File: The USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor (AP)

At least two people have been killed as a gunman opened fire at the US Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, according to base officials.

A third person has been wounded in the shooting and the gunman, thought to be a US Navy sailor, has shot himself dead.

The three victims were described in local media reports as harbour workers. The base's official Twitter account said they were civilian employees of the US Department of Defense.

It said that the incident began at around 2.30pm local time, and that the facility was on lockdown.

Rear Admiral Robert B Chadwick, the Navy's regional commander, said in a statement: "I can confirm there were three shooting victims.

"We have confirmed that two are deceased, one is in stable condition in a local hospital.

"I can also report that the shooter, who has tentatively been identified as an active duty sailor assigned to USS Columbia, is also deceased by an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound."

Governor David Ige said on Twitter that full details of the shooting were still emerging.

"I join in solidarity with the people of Hawaii as we express our heartbreak over this tragedy and concern for those affected by the shooting," he wrote on Twitter.

A White House spokesperson said the president had been briefed on the shooting and was monitoring the situation.

The base, which was formed by the merger of Pearl Harbor Naval Station and Hickam Air Force Base, was placed on lockdown for about two hours.

An unnamed witness told Hawaii News Now in an on-air interview that he had heard gunfire near Drydock 2 at the base and looked up from his desk to see the gunman put a gun to his head and shoot himself. The gunman was wearing a US Navy uniform, the witness told the station.

Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam is a combined US Air Force and Navy Installation located 8 miles from Honolulu.

The incident comes three days before the 78th anniversary of the 7 December 1941 attack on the naval base that led the US to enter the Second World War by declaring war on Japan.

Additional reporting by agencies