At least five were killed and several others wounded during the incident, state broadcaster HRT said
At least five were killed and several others wounded during the incident, state broadcaster HRT said AFP

A gunman opened fire in a nursing home in Croatia on Monday, killing at least five people, according to officials and state media, in a rare instance of gun violence in the Balkan country.

State broadcaster HRT said an unidentified gunman entered a nursing home in Daruvar -- some 130 kilometres (80 miles) east of Zagreb -- and began shooting.

At least five were killed and several others wounded during the incident, HRT said.

The number of dead was later confirmed by Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, who called for a thorough investigation by relevant officials.

"We are appalled by the murder of five people at the home for elderly in Daruvar," Plenkovic said on social media.

In the shooting's wake, police sealed off the private nursing home located along a quiet street in Daruvar, where a small crowd gathered and watched as a forensics team entered the residence.

Police said they were informed of the incident at 10:10 am local time (0810 GMT), and confirmed the suspect had entered the nursing home and used a firearm.

"The person linked to the perpetration of the crime is under police custody," police said in a statement.

As news of the shooting spread, shock rippled through Daruvar -- a quiet town of some 7,000 -- that has long been a popular spa destination thanks to the area's thermal springs.

"It's hard for me to understand that this can happen in our town, country," Daruvar mayor Damir Lnenicek told N1 regional broadcaster.

Around 20 people lived in the nursing home at the time of the shooting, according to the mayor.

"What is the trigger? It's difficult to say, it will be determined by the investigation" Lnenicek added.

Croatia's President Zoran Milanovic also took to social media where he called the shooting "savage".

"It is a terrifying warning and a last call to all competent institutions to do more to prevent violence in society, including even more rigorous control of arms ownership," said the president.

The head of a regional emergency care facility, Nenad Mrzlecki, told local media that medical teams found four dead at the scene and four others wounded, who were immediately taken to local hospitals.

Mrzlecki did not provide information about the fifth victim.

"Our teams are still on the ground and the priority is to provide everyone with the necessary help, after that is done we will know the exact data on the number of victims," he said.

Croatian newspaper Jutarnji list described the alleged shooter as a "retired military police officer" who killed his mother along with other residents and staff.

Shootings in Croatia are rare.

Last year in neighbouring Serbia, the country was rocked by back-to-back mass shootings, including a massacre at a school in the capital in Belgrade in which 10 people were killed.