New Haven, CT 2AMer

One woman was dead and five people were wounded when gunfire erupted in a Connecticut strip club early Saturday, police said.

The violence erupted inside an after-hours area inside the Key Club Cabaret on Saint John St. in New Haven about 3:30 a.m., the New Haven Register reported.

More than 100 people scurried into the street as an officer who heard the gunshots rushed inside the club - which has a "bring your own alcohol" policy, but was littered with drug paraphernalia and reeked of marijuana, police said.

Emergency workers arrived a few minutes later and found the victims bleeding in the jiggle joint.

One woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

Three men and two women were also shot, leaving two of them in critical condition, officials said. They were all taken to local hospitals, where they were being treated for their wounds.

It was not clear if any of the victims worked at the club.

Police said that the owners of the club — John Bertini and Peter Forchetti — were not on the property at the time of the deadly shooting.

The strip club boasts on its website that it is the state's largest after-hours club on Friday and Saturday.

Cops said they are still trying to determine what sparked the shooting and had not yet identified any suspects.

Governor Dannel Malloy and Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman released a joint statement expressing their sympathy to the shooting victims.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the woman who died as a result of her injuries, the victims who are fighting for their lives and all who are impacted by this senseless violence," the statement read. "This is a tragic reminder that despite progress in recent years, Connecticut cities still suffer too often from the plague of gun violence. On the state, municipal and community levels, Connecticut must continue to work together to make all our communities safer."

Malloy said during a press conference with cops near the scene afternoon that he is calling on a change in the training protocol for security officers at nightclubs.

Read more: nydailynews.com