On Friday morning, a man reportedly fired several shots into the air in Gorcy, a village near Longwy in France, before locking himself up in an apartment on Friday morning.

According to the Républicain Lorrain, the man discharged a firearm several times into the air near the school on Rue Jeanne-d'Arc.

The Meurthe-et-Moselle Prefecture said that "the school's special safety plan was immediately activated". Pupils and staff were placed under lockdown "under protection", and by midday, water and biscuits were distributed to them.

The man then barricaded himself inside a residence. The gendarmerie established a security perimeter around the area. On site are Val de Briey sub-prefect Hélène Geronimi, Mayor Bernard Fontaine, and Captain Christophe Grosso, head of the Val de Briey gendarmerie company, who are monitoring the situation.

Local authorities are meeting at the town hall to assess developments.

This is a breaking news story, more information to follow.