Several people were killed in a shooting at a historic African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina, police said early Thursday morning.

Several people were killed in a shooting at a historic African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina, police said early Thursday morning.

The attack was reported by several American media outlets.

The CNN said the shooting took place Wednesday evening at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the oldest AME church in the South, noting that the shooter was still at large.

Police haven't said how many people have been shot. But the source who spoke to CNN said several bodies were in the church but they were yet to be identified.

"It's really bad. It's a very bad scene," local pastor Thomas Dixon said.

"Apparently the person just entered the church and opened fire. That part has not been fully articulated on what happened yet ... they are still looking for the suspect."

Meanwhile, The USA Today quoted Police Chief Gregory Mullen as saying that nine people were killed in the attack.
"I do believe this was a hate crime," Mullen said.

Eight people died on the scene at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church and one person was pronounced dead at a hospital, Mullen added.

Police said the suspect in the shooting is a clean-shaven white man in his 20s, with a slender build. He was wearing a gray sweatshirt, blue jeans and boots.

Soon afterward, news cameras showed officers taking a man matching that description into custody, but police said they were still looking for the shooter, the CNN reported.