PALO ALTO — Officers shot and killed a person who allegedly charged at them with a knife Christmas night, according to a spokesman for the police department.

Police received a report around 9:16 p.m. that a person at a residence on the 600 block of Forest Avenue was threatening to harm others with a knife, Palo Alto police Sgt. James Reifschneider told The Daily News.

Gunfire erupted around 9:23 p.m., moments after officers arrived at the scene, according to Reifschneider.

“The preliminary investigation shows that almost immediately after our officers arrived on scene, a single suspect who was armed with a knife in his hand charged at our officers and shots were fired,” he said.

Medics treated the person at the scene and transported him to a hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries, according to Reifschneider.

No officers were injured.

The identities of the officers involved in the shooting and the person who was killed were not released Friday night. Likewise, details about what triggered the incident, the type of knife used and the number of shots fired were not available.

“At this point,” Reifschneider said, “we’re still sorting out exactly what happened and who did what.”

Officers who are involved in shootings are typically placed on administrative leave, according to Reifschneider.

“Physically, they were not injured,” he said about the officers. “But, as you might imagine, because this is an infrequent occurrence and something that police officers seek to avoid, it is a stressful and traumatic thing for them as well. So, we’re making sure they’re OK.”

Meanwhile, investigators with the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office are conducting an investigation, as is standard in any officer-involved shooting, according to Reifschneider.

“They work alongside and in parallel with our own investigators just to make sure that everything is being done thoroughly,” he said.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the city’s 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413.

Anonymous tips can be emailed to paloalto@tipnow.org, sent via text message or voice mail to 650-383-8984, or submitted through the Palo Alto Police Department’s free mobile app, which can be downloaded at bit.ly/PAPD-AppStore or bit.ly/PAPD-GooglePlay.

Email Jason Green at jgreen@dailynewsgroup.com or call him at 650-391-1337; follow him at twitter.com/jgreendailynews.