Weapons recovered by the Alton Police Department (Photo courtesy of the Alton Police Department)

Police cited four people Thursday after fraternity brothers started firing rifles at an Alton-area ranch — prompting a major law enforcement response.

At about 12:15 a.m. Thursday, roughly 20 people called the Alton Police Department about shots fired on the 1400 block of North Glasscock Road, according to information provided by Alton Police Chief Enrique Sotelo.

Bystanders directed police toward a nearby ranch.

“Officers activated red and blue over-head patrol unit lights to announced police presence and upon doing so, at least three shots were fired from within the ranch,” according to Sotelo.

The Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Department of Public Safety, Mission Police Department and Palmhurst Police Department dispatched law enforcement officers and a helicopter to assist.

From the helicopter, state troopers observed 40 to 50 people at the ranch.

Officers attempted to contact people at the ranch with a loudspeaker, but the people didn’t respond. When they entered the ranch, police found 54 people from the Kappa Sigma fraternity at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

“As per the fraternity’s spokeperson at the scene, the fraternity was conducting an initiation for new members when they decided to fire the weapons,” according to Sotelo. “The weapons were seized pending investigation and four individuals who admitted to firing the weapons were cited before the fraternity members were escorted out of the property.”

Investigators weren’t able to determine whether or not the three shots police heard were directed at officers, according to Sotelo.

Police will contact the university about the incident.

University officials weren’t immediately able to comment on the situation.