(CNN) — Authorities are responding to a reported shooting at pastor Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church, the Houston Police Department said in a post on X Sunday.
The reported shooting was at 3700 Southwest Freeway, according to police.
“This is an on-going, active scene. Please avoid the area. Additional information will be provided as it is available,” police said.
Lakewood Church – a megachurch about 6 miles from downtown Houston – confirmed reports of “shots fired,” saying on X, “There is an active situation involving shots fired at Lakewood. Law enforcement is on the scene. That is all the information we have at this time. Please pray for Lakewood and our community.”
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez also posted about the incident, saying the possible shooter appeared to be down. He had earlier said a Harris County sheriff’s deputy had fired the shot, but later clarified that did not appear to be the case, saying “other agencies fired.”
A Lakewood parishioner at the scene told CNN affiliate KPRC he was inside the church waiting for the Spanish language service to start when he heard multiple shots fired. The man was then instructed by a church usher to run, he told KPRC. The service was slated to begin at 3:00 p.m. ET, according to the church website.
CNN has reached out to Houston police and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office for more information.
Lakewood Church, now located in what used to be a sports arena, was founded by Osteen’s father in the 1950s.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
The-CNN-Wire
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