Police shut Whangarei road after shots fired

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Cordons have been lifted in Whangarei after the armed offenders squad was called to reports of a man firing a gun this afternoon.

Cordons were put in place on State Highway 14 just before 2pm, after numerous reports from the public shots had been fired at a property in Willow Place.

Traffic travelling towards Whangarei Hospital on Maunu Rd and at a cordon on Silverstream Rd had been turned away.

Police this afternoon said the cordons around the hospital had been lifted and people were allowed to leave Whangarei Hospital, which had been in lockdown.

Officers were stationed outside the hospital for traffic control because a large number of vehicles were waiting to leave.

Silverstream Rd and Willow Place are likely to remain closed to traffic for some time as the police investigation continues.

An injured man was earlier seen being carried from Willow Place on a stretcher, then taken to the nearby hospital under armed police guard. His injuries were not thought to be a result of gun fire.

Two other men have reportedly been arrested.

One Maunu Rd resident, whose property backs onto Willow Place, was parked in his driveway when he said he heard three loud gun shots.

Thinking it was someone just testing out a gun, he drove to the dairy and returned to find he could no longer access his house, where his partner and baby remained, as it was past the cordon.

Another Maunu Rd resident, whose house was outside the cordon on the hospital side, said he was outside gardening when he heard the loud bangs, which he initially thought was blasting at the quarry.

When a friend rang 10 minutes later to say the road was blocked, he realised they were gun shots.