After a man allegedly shot and killed a worker at a crowded St. Louis community center, an officer outside the building reportedly ran in to stop the situation from progressing.

The alleged gunman, 30, was reportedly told he would be sent home from his janitorial work Monday night and reacted in anger, allegedly killing the building's supervisor, 45-year-old Maria Lucas, according to St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

After shots went off, a person from inside the building was said to have run outside to find an officer. An officer ran inside, found the suspected shooter and left the man seriously wounded, according to Chief Bill Carson of Maryland Heights police, the report said.

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The police report said more than a dozen rounds were fired between the officer and the janitor, but the officer left the scene unscathed, according to the report.

"It's my belief that the actions of the officer involved were absolutely heroic," Carson said. "He immediately went and sought out the threat. His actions may have prevented further bloodshed. We don't know right now the intentions of the gunman."

Carson could not name the officer involved but said he graduated from the police academy 14 months before this incident.

The facility was full of patrons during the time of the shooting, with nearly 150 people running to seek cover in locker rooms, utility closets and any hiding space, according to the report.

One person, Sasha Kondratyeva, was exercising on the second floor of the gym when she claimed she heard a loud noise and found the alleged shooter pacing in the entryway with a gun in hand.

"I thought, 'this could be it,'" she said.

Family of the deceased supervisor were not available to comment to the news source, but Lucas's neighbors said she lived with her father and added that, "It's been such a sad time for the family."

The alleged shooter's name will not be released, pending formal charges.