San Bernardino shooting: Site of incident 'is facilty for people with developmental disabilities'

The Inland Regional Center has up to 670 employees

The Inland Regional Center has up to 670 employees (AP)

A witness said the shooting that reportedly killed as many as 14 people and injured up to 17, began inside a conference room at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, a facility that helps people with developmental disabilities.

Scores of people fled from the facility and spilled out onto a golf course as they fled from three gunmen. Images on local television showed people being walked out in a line with their arms raised above their head, as police said they were looking for between one to three gunmen, possibly carrying an assault weapon and a bullet-proof vest. Police later said they believed three gunmen "with a purpose" entered the facility and opened fire.

"People running out said there was a shooting in a conference room. People ran outside saying there was someone with an assult rifle and a bullet-proof vest," Sandra Wood, told MSNBC, from a location close to the centre, where she was taking cover."

Police have confirmed the attack resulted in fatalities and multiple casualties

The centre, located in San Bernadino, an hour's drive from Los Angeles, apparently coordinates facilities for people with developmental disabilities in nearby several counties. Marybeth Feild of the Inland Regional Center, said the gunfire erupted in a building that houses at least 25 employees as well as a library and conference centre. It had been rented to an outside group on Wednesday. The group was made up of officials from the county's health department, reports said.

The New York Times said law enforcement officials believed one of the gunmen had worked at the facility and recently had a dispute with fellow employees

A witness has told police that although the gunmen had their faces covered, one of them sounded and appeared very similar to an employee who had left the facility earlier in the day.

“They had their appearances covered but a witness believed it had been someone who worked there,” said one official.

Terry Petit recieved a text from his daughter as gunfire erupted inside her employers' building. "People shot. In the office waiting for cops. Pray for us. I am locked in an office," he said, reading her text messages to reporters, according to Fox13 News.

The Facebook page of the centre reads: “Currently, nearly 670 Inland Regional Center staff members provide services to more than 30,200 people with developmental disabilities and their families in San Bernardino and Riverside counties,” said the centre’s Facebook page.

“A Consumer Services Coordinator will develop goals and objectives that will enhance opportunities to live more closely in line with the core values of the agency.”

Another woman, Cita Wilson, who was also sheltering near the scene of the incident, said: “They do a lot of work with people with disabilities.”

The three-storey building, with three wings, is said to be one of 21 of such facilities across the state of Califorinia.

The Fresno Bee newspaper quoted Heather Flores, executive director of the Central Valley Regional Center in Fresno, who has worked closely with some of regional centre staff in San Bernardino.

"Our hearts and prayers are with the victims, their families and the regional center providers and the families they serve," she said.