Two wounded in Christmas morning SF nightclub shooting

Two men were wounded early Christmas morning in a shooting outside a nightclub in San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood, police said.

While police were responding to the shooting on the 500 block of Fourth Street, a fight broke out nearby, in which two suspects severely beat a man, said Sgt. Michael Andraychak, a San Francisco police spokesman.

Officers first responded to the nightclub at 2:38 a.m., where they found two men suffering from gunshot wounds on the sidewalk, police said.

The victims, who were not identified but are believed to be about 25 and 32 years old, were treated at a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Andraychak said.

No suspect was identified or arrested in the attack.

As the officers tended to the victims, a fight broke out nearby, police said. It started when a 24-year-old man was trying to break up an altercation, and a suspect punched him, police said.

When the victim dropped to the ground, a second 24-year-old man began kicking him in the head multiple times, Andraychak said.

Another person at the scene jumped in to help as police arrived. The first suspect took off, but officers arrested the 24-year-old, who was not immediately identified.

The beating victim was taken to a hospital where he was treated for head trauma. He is expected to survive, police said.

Photo: Getty Images / / Two people were shot outside a San Francisco nightclub early...

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky