Person injured in dining hall shooting at University of Bridgeport

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — A gunman opened fire in the University of Bridgeport dining hall, wounding one person and putting the campus on lockdown as police searched for the suspect.

Police in Connecticut’s largest city said the victim was treated at a hospital for injuries that were not life-threatening and that the gunman remained at large Wednesday. The lockdown was lifted shortly before 6am on Wednesday as police called it an “isolated incident” with no further threat to the public.

Authorities said the shooting happened shortly after 6:30 p.m. Tuesday and officers arrived minutes later to a chaotic scene. The shooting involved two young men who were not students at the university, police said. The men knew each other and the shooting appeared to be the result of an argument, authorities said.

Police Chief Roderick Porter said the victim was alert and spoke with police Tuesday evening. He said there were several people in the dining room at the time and he did not immediately know how many shots were fired.

“We want to reassure students, parents, teachers and residents of Bridgeport that the area is safe,” Porter said in a statement. “To further enhance the security of the area, law enforcement will maintain a presence on the University of Bridgeport campus until the suspect is brought to justice.”

The private university’s president, Danielle Wilken, said the dining hall was open to the public Tuesday night due to sporting events on campus.

The nonprofit school has approximately 4,100 undergraduate and graduate students.