Three people were killed, and another was wounded on Thursday in a shooting in a town in Australia's New South Wales state, police said.

Emergency services were called to an address at Lake Cargelligo, a town of around 1,500 people, following reports of a shooting, a police statement said.

Three people — two women and a man — were dead, and another man was taken to the hospital in serious but stable condition, police said.

The shooter or shooters appeared to be at large.

Police urged the public to avoid the area and for local residents to stay inside.