UPDATE: Gunman is Jiverly Voong, of Vietnamese descent. He held dozens of

UPDATE: Gunman is Jiverly Voong, of Vietnamese descent. He held dozens of people hostage for several hours before shooting himself to death, police said. Huffington Post

A gunman killed at least 12 and took as many as 41 people hostage at an upstate New York immigrant counseling center this morning, shocking a nation already reeling from several mass shootings this year.

The violence rocked the small university city of Binghamton, three hours from New York City, when at least one gunman entered the American Civic Association building after blocking a rear exit, then with a high-powered rifle mowed down people assembled for English classes, citizenship counselling and other services for immigrants. Survivors of the initial assault fled to a basement room and more than a dozen hid in a closet, WBNG television reported.

The shooting began about 10.30am. Police quickly established a perimeter around the building and tried to get in contact with the panicked survivors inside. Local television station WBNG reported that a gunman had been killed. Reports from inside the building referred to a single gunman of Asian descent, in his 20s.

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