JUST IN: Bone-Chilling New Details Emerge From Tragic Minnesota Shooting

As details about a horrific shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic church continue to emerge, a new report suggests that city authorities failed to respond in full force due to a backlog of criminal cases keeping their attention elsewhere. The church was hosting a student mass for a school located just steps away at the time of the attack.

Fox9 Minneapolis reported that a “violent night” across Minneapolis kept police officers busy in the hours before a gunman opened fire at Annunciation Church in the 500 block of 54th Street, killing at least two and wounding up to 20 others, mostly children, according to multiple media outlets.

“We know already that Minneapolis police were pretty strapped,” an anchor with the station reported late Wednesday morning, citing an early-morning deadly shooting in the downtown area.

“No indication that any of that is connected to here, but it gives you an idea of the city’s resources and how they’ve been using those,” she added.

Also yesterday, authorities responded to a shooting involving seven victims and a third fatal shooting around 8 p.m. local time Tuesday night.

“It could be that a lot of this help is being called in” from surrounding towns “to help alleviate… some of the business, I guess you could say, that Minneapolis police are under,” the anchor explained.

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First responders have called for dispatchers to send a Mass Casualty Response and fire crews as they work to stanch the bleeding of victims. EMS crews from nearby North Memorial and Allina are assisting.

In addition, authorities say a bomb may have been placed inside the building. It’s unclear whether the device has been located yet or detonated.

FBI agents have arrived on scene and appear to be coordinating a response with the Minneapolis police, who were seen comforting parents waiting to locate their children at the Catholic K-8 school served by the church.

A source with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives told NBC News that its agents responded as well because they happened to be in the area as the shooting began around 8:30 a.m.

ATF has obtained at least one firearm from the shooter, and they are beginning the tracing process to determine how the weapon came into the individual’s possession.

Children’s Minnesota, a nearby hospital, said that six children are being treated for wounds from the shooting.

“Children’s Minnesota is aware of the recent tragic shooting in Minneapolis. Our teams are trained to respond in times of crisis, and are fully prepared to care for impacted children,” the hospital said in a statement. “We will not share more details to respect the privacy of our patients and families.”