Police have arrested a boy of 17 in the southern French town of Grasse after three people were hurt in a shooting at a school.

The boy, who is said to have been armed with three guns and two grenades, launched the attack at Tocqueville high school, where he was a student.

The school’s headteacher and two pupils were injured, with five others reportedly treated for shock.

Anti-terrorist commandos from the elite Raid force were sent to the scene.

Regional president Christian Estrosi said the “precise circumstances” around the shooting remained unclear, amid a number of conflicting reports.

However, he said there was no evidence to link it to terrorism.

French President Francois Hollande echoed his words in a press conference on Thursday afternoon, but added France should remain “vigilant” and stay under a state of emergency.

One student reported hearing four gunshots, while another student, speaking to Nice Matin (in French), described hearing three loud bangs before turning and seeing a shooter.

It is still not clear how many people were behind the attack. Initially, local media said there was a second shooter who was on the run, but many outlets have now reported that there was only one.

Interior ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet told BFMTV: “We are still in the phase of rescue, of searching for a possible second perpetrator.”

Grasse, the capital of France’s perfume industry, is about 44km (27 miles) from the city of Nice, where a lorry attack in July killed 86 people.

France remains under a state of emergency after a string of deadly attacks in the past 18 months.