Police said they responded to multiple shots fired just before 1.30 am in bustling downtown Austin, where a large crowd began to disperse.

A statement from the city’s police department said “13 victims sustained gunshot wounds or were injured, and a suspect(s) remains at large”.

“Our officers responded very quickly,” Austin’s interim police chief Joseph Chacon told a news conference.

“They were able to immediately begin life saving measures for many of these patients,” he added.

Two of the victims were in critical condition, with the 11 others described as stable.

Police said they had received a description of a suspect, a black male, but that it was still unclear whether one or multiple suspects were involved.

They added that the shooting appeared to be an isolated incident, although an investigation was still ongoing.