Gunfire erupted early Sunday in a popular downtown area of a Kansas college town, leaving three people dead and two wounded, police said.

The shooting happened around 1:45 a.m. not far from police headquarters in Lawrence, in an area crowded with people from concerts, bars and events at the nearby University of Kansas, which was celebrating the start of college basketball season.

Officers heard more than 20 gunshots, Interim Police Chief Anthony Brixius said. Brixius said responding officers found several people wounded in a large crowd.

Interim Police Chief Anthony Brixius said that responding officers found several wounded people in a large crowd.

The victims who died were identified as 22-year-old Leah Elizabeth Brown of Shawnee, and Topeka residents Colwin Lynn Henderson, 20, and Dupree Dean, 24. None was a student at the school, according to university spokeswoman Erinn Barcomb-Peterson.

Police didn’t say what led to the shooting, and no arrests had been made as of Sunday afternoon.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.