Three police killed, two hurt in Pittsburgh shootout

Three police officers were shot dead and two more wounded yesterday as they responded to a domestic disturbance call at a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, home where a man wearing a bullet-proof vest opened fire, police said.

The officers had been called out to the house following reports of a disturbance, but came under fire from a man inside, triggering an hours-long standoff.

"Our hearts and our prayers go out to the officers who paid the ultimate sacrifice," Police Chief Nathan Harper said in a televised press conference. "It's a very sad day for the city of Pittsburgh."

Harper said the shooter was a 23-year-old man who fired at officers several dozen times using a high-powered assault rifle before he was finally wounded and then surrendered.

"He had one assault rifle and one long-arm rifle as well as one pistol and a lot of ammo," Harper had said earlier.

The first officers were shot immediately upon entering the house, leading Harper to say he believed they were victims of a trap set by the gunman.

"As soon as the officer stepped through the doorway he was immediately met with gunfire," Harper said. He and a second officer who came through the doorway were both shot in the head.

The burst of violence comes just a day after a jobless immigrant stormed an immigrant services centre, where he had been learning English in Binghamton, New York and went on a murderous rampage, killing 13 people before shooting himself to death.