Eight people died in a mass shooting on Wednesday near the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) light rail maintenance yard region near San Jose in California, the local police department said.

The shooter, who died of self-inflicted gunshot wounds, has been identified as Sam Cassidy, CNN reported quoting law enforcement sources. Authorities said the suspect was an employee of VTA. 

The sheriff said that the suspect “took his own life”, reported AFP.

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Santa Clara County Sheriff’s deputy Russell Davis confirmed the tally of victims further warning the numbers could rise. 

He said, “I can confirm with you at this point that there are eight victims that are pronounced deceased at this point. And there’s one suspect that’s pronounced deceased”, reported AFP.

Brandi Childress, the spokesperson of VTA, said that the police reached on site after a report of an active shooter emerged, CNN reported.

Reportedly, a video, which is doing rounds on social media, shows the presence of several ambulances at the rail maintenance yard. The site is also near the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s office and the San Jose Police Department.

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It was initially not clear if the shooter was a worker at the facility. But some of the injured were employees at the site, said Police, AFP reports.

US President Joe Biden has been briefed about the San Jose shooting by his Homeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randal, reported CNN quoting the White House.