Three dead after car hits Melbourne pedestrians

A 10-year-old child is among three people killed by a man with drug, violence and mental health issues who deliberately mowed pedestrians down with a car in Melbourne's Bourke St mall.

A man and a woman in their 30s were also killed by the 26-year-old driver who is now in hospital under police guard.

Police commissioner Graham Ashton said 15 more people were injured by the car in the attack that is not terror-related, five of whom are critical.

The Royal Childrens' Hospital said four children, aged three months, two, nine and 12, are in a critical condition.

"What we do know of the person is there is an extensive family violence history involved," the commissioner told reporters on Friday.

"He has come to our attention on many occasions in the past.

"We have mental health and drug-related issues in the background of this particular person.

"He has been coming to our attention more recently over recent days in relation to assaults, family violence-related assaults."

Police say the man was involved in a stabbing and hostage situation earlier in the day, where a woman escaped from his car on the Bolte Bridge.

They say it is not a terror-related incident.

Former Victorian police chief commissioner Christine Nixon was crossing the road when the car raced by and had to step out of the way.

Ms Nixon said she saw a pram on the ground and helped the mother.

"She kept asking me 'where's the baby'," Ms Nixon told ABC 774.

The car was seen circling the intersection of Flinders and Swanston streets outside the Flinders St railway station minutes before racing up Swanston St and turning into Bourke St.

Emily Cousins told AAP she saw police trying to stop the car during the hostage situation in West Melbourne at 11.45am on Friday.

"Three to four response guys jump out with tasers or guns yelling 'don't move'," Ms Cousins said.

"Then the red car turns across in front of my car and the front passenger ... jumped out of the moving vehicle."

Witnesses reported hearing at least five gunshots before the man was arrested after ploughing into people in the mall.

"There's someone on the middle of the ground and there's blood all over the street," Rishi Hathiramani, a CBD shopkeeper, told AAP.

"I've seen accidents but never this bad.

"It's pretty brutal."

Police confirmed they shot the man during the arrest, and that the wounds were not life threatening.

A number of CBD businesses went into lockdown, while others have been evacuated.

"A heap of people ran into my store, it was horrible. Half of my staff are in tears," a Strandbags manager told AAP.

City office worker William Mulholland said he came out of a laneway and saw a number of bodies lying on the pavement receiving CPR from police and emergency workers.

He said his friend came out of the RACV building on Bourke St and saw a body lying on the pavement in front of him.

One witness told ABC radio he saw the car travelling along the footpath.

"It was a maroon Commodore travelling easily 70km/hr on the footpath. We heard thumps and there was people flying everywhere," he said.

Another witness was in the Deloitte building on Bourke Street and saw a suspect under police guard.

"The suspect is lying on his back, he's cuffed," he told 3AW.

"There's a crashed car ... completely wrecked and over the top of that car was a pram."

Prime minister Malcolm Turnbull tweeted his sympathy.

"Our prayers and deepest sympathy are with the victims & their families, of this vicious criminal attack in Bourke St Melbourne," he tweeted.

Acting commander Stuart Bateson told 3AW the man had a history with police.

"He's known to us, he certainly is," Cmdr Bateson told 3AW.

He said the Homicide squad was combing through the city and large portions of the CBD would be shut down for some time.

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