Sailor Shoots and Kills 2, Injures 1 at Pearl Harbor Base Days Before Anniversary of Historic Attack

A United States sailor opened fire at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard on Wednesday afternoon, just three days before the 78th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor that led to the United States’ entry into World War II in 1941.

A “sailor reportedly shot and injured three Department of Defense civilian workers before shooting themself [sic],” the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam account tweeted on Wednesday. “The incident took place this afternoon at the vicinity of the shipyard’s Dry Dock 2. The base is no longer in lockdown.”

The “incident is still under investigation, however, preliminary indications are the sailor acted alone,” a spokesman from the JBPHH public affairs office tells PEOPLE, adding that two of the Department of Defense civilians were killed.

The Queens Medical Center tells PEOPLE that they received one 36-year-old male patient in “guarded condition,” meaning he remains between critical and serious condition, as a result of the shooting.

In a press conference later in the day, the Navy stated the shooter had died.

The Honolulu fire department tells PEOPLE that they received a report of an active shooter or shooters on the base at 2:37 p.m., and had arrived on scene by 2:44 p.m. with six units and 22 fire department personnel.

“Base security and Navy investigative services are currently investigating,” the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam Twitter account stated. “The names of the victims will not be released until the next of kin have been notified.”

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“JBPHH security forces have responded to a reported shooting at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. The incident occurred at approximately 2:30 p.m.,” the base wrote on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon. “Due to the ongoing security incident, access/gates to #JBPHH are closed. We will update when we have further information.”

JBHH said in another tweet about an hour later that access to the base had reopened.

The U.S. Navy is taking the lead on the investigation, according to KITV.

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“Obviously, our thoughts are with the families of the victims and everyone involved,” said Rear Adm. Robert Chadwick at the press conference, adding that support services for the shipyard personnel were being made available.

“I am shocked and saddened at the news that multiple people have been hurt in an active shooter situation at Pearl Harbor,” wrote council member Kymberly Pine on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon. “This is rattling for our community and my heart goes out to the families of the victims and emergency responders who are on the scene now.”

Pearl Harbor was infamously attacked in a surprise air strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service on December 7, 1941. The attack killed thousands of Americans, and the United States entered World War II the very next day.