A woman has been killed and a man injured after they were shot by a prop firearm at a movie set outside Santa Fe, authorities said.

The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office said a 42-year-old woman was airlifted to a hospital, where she died, while a 42-year-old man was receiving emergency care at another hospital.

Authorities did not identify the two people or say if they were actors or crew members.

Production has been halted on the Western movie Rust, which is being directed by Joel Souza and produced by Alec Baldwin.

A spokesperson for Baldwin said there was an accident on the set involving the misfire of a prop gun with blanks.

Sheriff’s spokesman Juan Rios told the Albuquerque Journal: “According to investigators, it appears that the scene being filmed involved the use of a prop firearm when it was discharged.

“Detectives are investigating how and what type of projectile was discharged.”

Deputies responded at about 2pm on Thursday to the movie set at the Bonanza Creek Ranch after 911 calls came in of a person being shot on set, Mr Rios said.

The movie Rust is about a 13 year-old boy who is left to fend for himself and his younger brother following the death of their parents in 1880s Kansas, according to the Internet Movie Database website.

The teenager goes on the run with his long estranged grandfather after he is sentenced to hang for the accidental killing of a local rancher.