A man has shot his two adult daughters in Memorial Day shootings that have shocked the local California community where the shootings took place.

Anthony Alvarez, 63, was an honored Vietnam Veteran who had been awarded the Purple Heart for his service.

It is currently unknown why, but early on Monday morning Alvarez allegedly snapped and got out a gun, shooting his two grown up daughters.

Mother of three, 37 year old Jennifer Kimble, and her sister, 33 year old Valerie Alvarez, were found by authorities with gunshot wounds.

Jennifer's three young children were in the house at the time of the shootings. According to reports, Jennifer was shot multiple times and died from her injuries, where as Valerie was shot at least once, but survived and was later rushed to a local hospital for treatment.

After shooting his daughters, Anthony Alvarez, then turned the gun on himself, shooting himself dead in the home.

The shooter's 8-year-old granddaughter is the one who reportedly picked up the phone to call 911 after hearing gunshots in the house. She was in the home with her two older brothers, who are 11 and 13 years old.

Sergeant Chris Douglass with the Tulare County Sheriff's Department has said to CBS, "Our heart goes out to her, she had to take...take a brave step to do that in regards to what was happening in her home at the time."

Alvarez lived with his two daughters and his three grandchildren in a small home in a residential part of Orosi, a town of about 9,000 people in California's Central Valley.

The shootings took place very early on Monday, with the 911 call being placed at about 4.39 a.m. local time.

When police arrived on the scene, they found the young girl's mother, Jennifer Kimble, dead having been shot multiple times. Valerie Alvarez was also found shot, with at least one gunshot wound. Jennifer's three children were found in the home, and all were unharmed.

Valerie Alvarez was rushed to a local hospital and stabilized by medical staff and taken into surgery.