Bangkok, Thailand (CNN) --
Thai authorities launched a manhunt Thursday after at least 30 people, including children, were killed in a mass shooting at a daycare center in the country's northeast, authorities said.
The shooting took place at the Child Development Center in Uthaisawan Na Klang district, Nong Bua Lamphu province, according to a statement from the prime minister's office.
“The prime minister has expressed his condolences for the shooting which resulted in 30 deaths,” the statement read.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered the authorities to arrest the perpetrator as soon as possible, the statement added.
Gun ownership in Thailand is relatively high compared to other Southeast Asian countries.
Mass shootings in the country are rare, but in one 2020 incident, a soldier killed 29 people in a shootout that began at a military site and then continued into a shopping mall.
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