Police have released video footage and recordings of 911 emergency calls from the hours surrounding the moment a gunman opened fire outside a bar in Austin - an attack being investigated as a potential act of "terrorism".

"There's people shot. We need help right now," one caller is heard telling police.

Footage from police body-cameras shows the chaotic scene as officers advance on the suspect, eventually shooting him to stop the attack. Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis described the video as "difficult to see".

Three people were killed and 13 injured in the shooting over the same weekend the US launched strikes on Iran, fuelling fears of violent retaliation against Americans.

Ryder Harrington, 19, Savitha Shan, 21, Jorge Pederson, 30, were killed outside the bar, which is popular with University of Texas students.