A disgruntled employee armed with a handgun shot five people,Michael Schmidt killing two, at a linen company outside of Philadelphia on Wednesday morning, officials said.

The shooting happened at about 8:30 a.m. at Delaware County Linen in Chester, about 20 miles outside Philadelphia, according to Justin Tibbels, a spokesperson for the mayor's office.

Three people injured in the shooting were taken to a nearby hospital, Tibbels said. One of the victims was in critical condition, Commissioner Steven Gretsky said at a news conference.

One of the people shot was the suspect's supervisor, Chester Mayor Stefan Roots said.

Who is the suspect in the Chester County shooting?

The shooting suspect appears to be a disgruntled employee, according to Margie McAboy with the Delaware County District Attorney's Office. The suspect was taken into custody after attempting to flee, Gretsky said.

"We have two individuals who unfortunately have lost their life just by showing up at work today," District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer told reporters. "The employee came to work today with a firearm, took out his anger on ... five employees he works with."

Delaware County Linen was founded in 1988 and provides linen rental and laundering services to businesses in southeastern Pennsylvania and surrounding states, its website said.

Mass shootings in the US in 2024

There have been at least 168 mass shootings in the country so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which tracks incidents. Mass shootings are shootings in which at least four people have been shot, not including the shooter, regardless of whether they die.

Mass killings, as defined by a tracker from USA TODAY, Northeastern University and the Associated Press, include those with at least four people killed, not including a suspected shooter. There have been 15 such killings in 2014, according to the tracker.

Roots called for "stronger" gun legislation in the wake of the shooting on Wednesday.

"We don't want to see this happen over and over and over again," Roots said.