San Francisco, Apr 18 (IANS): An armed man who allegedly threatened to shoot residents in Northern California was shot and killed by Alameda County Sheriff's deputies, authorities said.

Deputies responded to multiple reports shortly after 3.30 a.m. on Saturday and confronted the man, Xinhua news agency quoted the Sheriff's Office as saying.

The suspect fired multiple rounds and one of the bullets grazed the head of a deputy.

Deputies returned fire and killed the suspect, the Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

The man "went for the gun so quickly, leaving us no options", it added.

Multiple officers fired at the man, Sheriff's Office spokesperson Ray Kelly told media on the scene.

According to The Washington Post's police shooting database, 38 fatal officer shootings have happened so far this year in California.

The most recent was the deadly shooting of a man in the parking lot of the Hyatt Place Hotel in Fremont on April 1, according to a report by the San Francisco Chronicle.