Three people have been shot in Times Square with emergency services rushing to the scene in the early hours of the morning.

An 18-year-old woman and two men, 19 and 65, have been injured after violence erupted in the popular tourist hotspot in the heart of New York City on Saturday.

Police descended on the scene between West 44th Street and 7th Avenue in Manhattan after the chaos unfolded at around 1:20am.

The woman was injured with a graze to the neck, while the 19-year-old suffered a gunshot wound to his right foot and the 65-year-old was shot in his left leg.

A suspect has since been taken into custody, while all three victims have been taken to Bellevue Hospital where they remain in a stable condition. 

One witness who saw the shooting unfold claimed a car just metres in front of him had been 'shot up', with its windows pierced by bullet holes.

They posted video footage from the scene on social media showing terrified members of the public fleeing from the scene outside the Hard Rock Cafe on 7th Avenue seconds after the gun shots rang out.

Another clip showed one person being treated on the ground before being lifted onto a stretcher and wheeled into an ambulance. 

'Three people have been shot in the heart of Times Square. Bodies are on the ground, bullet holes pierce car windows. The chaos unfolded near a major tourist area. One suspect is in custody.' the witness posted on social media

'I was literally 2 cars in front of the car that got shot up,' they added. 

The incident comes just days after another shooting in downtown Manhattan by a gunman who later took his own life.

Shane Tamura, 27, strode into the Midtown Manhattan offices that house the NFL's headquarters with an assault rifle and killed four people on July 28, including an off-duty police officer.

Authorities say Tamura arrived at the offices by car on Monday afternoon following a mammoth cross-country trip. 

New York mayor Eric Adams indicated that authorities believe his target was the NFL, which has its headquarters in the tower. A note found on the gunman's body mentioned the league.