Airbnb bans 'party houses' after mass shooting in US

New York, Nov 3: Airbnb's boss announced that the online platform, which offers private homes for rent for short periods, is banning "party houses" after a deadly shooting at a Halloween event in California.

Five people killed in Halloween shooting:

Five people were killed and others wounded in a Thursday night shooting in Orinda, California, in a house that had been rented on Airbnb. More than 100 people were present at the event, which was announced on social media.

Venue for a Halloween party:

The house was reportedly booked under a pretence for a small group, before being publicised on Instagram as the venue for a Halloween party which eventually drew a crowd of more than 100 people. The host did not authorise the party, Airbnb said.

Airbnb bans 'party houses' :

"Starting today, we are banning 'party houses' and we are redoubling our efforts to combat unauthorized parties and get rid of abusive host and guest conduct, including conduct that leads to the terrible events we saw in Orinda," Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky said on Twitter.

To do this, Airbnb will increase "manual screening of high-risk reservations flagged by our risk detection technology," create a "dedicated 'party house' rapid response team," and take "immediate action" against those who violate guest policies, Chesky wrote.

"We must do better, and we will," he said. "This is unacceptable." Michael Wang, the owner of the home where the shooting took place, told the San Francisco Chronicle that he rented his house to a woman who said she was organizing a family reunion for a dozen people. The sheriff's department said they were responding to a noise complaint at the house around the time the shooting was reported. Three people died at the scene, while two more passed away after being hospitalized, police said.