A U.S. sailor fatally shot two people and wounded a third at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard in Hawaii on Wednesday before committing suicide, officials said.

The two people killed were Department of Defense civilian employees, an official told AFP.

A third victim is in stable condition after being hospitalized while the shooter, a U.S. Navy sailor, also died from "an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound," officials said in a press briefing.

The names of the victims and the shooter were not shared.

One witness told local media he was sitting at his computer when he heard shots fired and rushed to the window, where he saw three victims on the ground.

The witness, who did not want to be identified, said he then saw the gunman, who was wearing a sailor's uniform, shoot himself in the head.

The shooting took place near the south entrance of the sprawling base located on the southern shore of Oahu.

The base hosts both the Navy and Air Force.

The incident unfolded three days before the 78th anniversary of the 1941 Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor that left 2,403 U.S. service members dead.

The worst shooting in Hawaii history took place just over 20 years ago when a Xerox employee killed seven of his colleagues.