Police in the southern United States state of Kentucky are searching for the shooter after as many as seven people were injured on a rural stretch of a major highway.

They had been driving along the road just before 6pm (10:00 GMT) not far from London, the town’s mayor, Randall Weddle, said on Facebook.

Kentucky State Police spokesman Scottie Pennington said earlier that between four and six people had been hurt.

Local news station WYMT said there were “multiple severe injuries” but no confirmed deaths.

The shooting led to the temporary closure of Interstate 75, a major north-south highway that cuts across the eastern half of the US, in both directions.

Authorities said they were searching for 32-year-old Joseph Couch in rugged terrain near the highway. Local media said the shots had been fired from a wooded area or an overpass.

“Consider armed and dangerous,” the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post about Couch. “Do not attempt to approach.”

The incident comes days after two students and two teachers were killed in a school shooting in Georgia.

A 14-year-old boy has been charged with murder over that attack while his father, who had allegedly bought the gun for him as a gift, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and second-degree murder.

Gun violence is common in the US, a country where there are more firearms than people.