(Reuters) - The U.S. Navy on Thursday was investigating what prompted a sailor to shoot dead two civilians working at Hawaii's historic Pearl Harbor military base before turning the gun on himself.
The names of the gunman and his victims have not been released to the public. The gunman was described by a witness as wearing a Navy uniform during the attack, and the civilians were at the base working for the Department of Defence, Navy officials said.
The shooting took place three days before the 78th anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack on Dec. 7, 1941, which led the United States to declare war on Japan and enter World War Two.
A third person who was wounded was in a stable condition at a hospital on Wednesday night, military officials said.
Navy officials were still piecing together the attack on Wednesday night, saying it was unclear if the gunman knew his victims. Officials said they were still confirming the type of weapon used as of Wednesday night, noting that people were forbidden from bringing personal weapons onto the base.
The Pearl Harbor base is about eight miles (13 km) from the state capital of Honolulu. It was placed on lockdown for about two hours after the incident at about 2:30 p.m. Hawaii Standard Time on Wednesday.
(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb in Culver City, California; Additional reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)