Two children who were shot inside a car traveling in front of University of Mississippi Medical Center on Thursday afternoon were expected to survive, authorities said.

A suspect in a dark sedan heading south on State Street in Jackson rolled down the window and fired four to five shots into another sedan with a mother and her two children inside, Jackson Police Chief James Davis said. He said the children, ages 1 and 3, were in stable condition.

Initially there was concern of an active shooter on the UMMC campus, prompting officials to warn employees in a text message to run and hide. The alert went out at about 4:40 p.m. Davis said police, including those from JPD, UMMC and other agencies, responded just after 4:30 p.m.

The woman driving the car grabbed the children and rushed into the UMMC emergency room for treatment, Davis said. One child was shot in the leg and the other child was hit in the torso.

The suspect fled in a black Nissan sedan with a Cannon Motors paper tag, and was still on the loose early Thursday evening, the chief said. The woman in the car indicated to authorities she did not know who the shooter was, and Davis said he was not immediately sure if the shooting was related to a domestic dispute.

Davis said the police "saturated this area" when they got the call, labeling the shooting as "senseless." He added officers were working to obtain surveillance footage from UMMC for additional details about how the shooting transpired.

Marc Rolph, a spokesman for UMMC, said as soon as hospital officials heard reports of a shooting on or near the campus, they sent out the alert. "We do it out of an abundance of caution," he said. He confirmed the injuries to the children are "not thought to be life threatening."

Davis added concerns over an active shooter situation were fueled by loud and repetitive popping noises coming from a nearby parking garage, which the chief indicated put people near the scene of the shooting on edge.

The UMMC text said there was an active shooter at Parking Garage B. "This is not a drill," it said.

U.S. marshals and the FBI also responded to the scene and were assisting in the investigation.

Gov. Phil Bryant tweeted Thursday night, "We are thankful there was no active shooter situation at UMMC. Now the investigation begins to find who committed this terrible crime. Please pray for the young children that were injured."

Davis asked anyone with information about the suspect or vehicle to call (601) 960-1234.