Police across Canterbury are all armed as an investigation continues into a double shooting in the town of Kaiapoi.
One man arrived at Christchurch Hospital in a critical condition in the early hours of this morning, with bullet wounds to his arm and torso.
The other man has been shot in the arm, and two other people known to him are in custody helping police with their enquiries.
Neighbours were left stunned as armed police swarmed Whitefield and Aldersgate streets in darkness.
"I'd heard a gunshot in the middle of the night and I thought it might have been a firework. Then I heard raised voices so I was aware something was going on," one man told 1 NEWS.
Another neighbour said she woke at 4:30am to see flashing lights out her window.
"There were cops everywhere, guns. [It was] scary," she said.
Frontline staff in the region have been told to carry guns, as the two men who were shot are believed to have gang connections and there's fear of retaliation.
A neighbour said she had police in her backyard hiding along the fence, camped out.
Police said there's no risk to the wider community.
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