+++ Riots erupt in Baltimore - live updates +++

All updates in Universal Coordinated Time (UTC).

02:14 According to the daily the Washington Post, fire department spokesperson Samuel Johnson has said that the massive fire was "not related to the unrest."

The report goes on to say that the blaze appeared to have links to a construction site nearby, but that the cause had not yet been determined.

01:23 US Attorney General Loretta Lynch, sworn in on Monday, condemns the "senseless acts of violence" and vows to "bring the full resources of the Department of Justice to bear in protecting those under threat, investigating wrongdoing and securing an end to violence."

01:03 Baltimore police say at least 27 people have been arrested today.

01:01 WBAL-TV shows live images of an unidentified building engulfed in flames.

00:52 Maryland state police superintendent William Pallozzi says that up to 500 additional police officers will be deployed from other Maryland cities and towns to assist Baltimore police.

Maryland has also requested 5,000 police officers from neighboring states to support efforts to restore peace in the city, Pallozzi says.

00:49 Maryland governor Larry Hogan confirms National Guard has been deployed and that "all state agencies [are] actively engaged in this situation."

00:28 Local television channel WBAL shows footage of looters storming a large store and leaving with merchandise. Vehicles are also seen pulling into the parking lot with looters jumping out, running inside, returning and departing with stolen goods.

00:25 According to the White House, US President Barack Obama is being briefed on the situation in Baltimore by US Attorney General Loretta Lynch. The Maryland city lies just 40 miles (64 kilometers) northeast of the US capital, Washington.

00:12 Mayor says "it has not been determined yet" how the National Guard will support the Baltimore police department.

00:11 Local police confirm that school-aged children have been involved in clashes with police from "what they could tell."

At least 15 police officers have been injured, two of whom have been hospitalized, according to the latest figures.

00:02 Local police tell reporters in Baltimore unrest is "unprecedented violence" and that it won't be tolerated. Police have been "fully deployed" and that more personnel have been called in from across the state of Maryland in order to restore peace.

00:00 Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announces 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew to begin on Tuesday for one week during press conference.

Mayor calls Monday's rioting "disturbing."

"There is a difference between what we saw over the past week with the peaceful protests...and the thugs who only want to incite violence and destroy our city," Rawlings-Blake says.

23:23 Baltimore police urge motorists to avoid the protest area.

23:15 Maryland state governor, Larry Hogan, orders a state of emergency in Baltimore. His order comes after violent rioting which left at least six police officers injured and one reported unresponsive.

US broadcaster CNN tweeted images from the scene showing violent confrontations between police and people on the streets.

Monday protests

Rioting broke out in the northwestern corner of the city on Monday afternoon not long after Gray's funeral, which drew over 2,000 people, including White House officials.

Local television broadcaster WBAL showed scenes of looting on the streets, with dozens of men and women storming a liqour store and a CVS pharmacy, which was set on fire. CVS says no employees were injured.

Several local businesses, as well as the main campus of the University of Maryland shut down in response to the unrest.

Gray died on April 19, a week after sustaining a fatal injury when he was arrested. According to the Baltimore police commissioner Anthony Batts, officers had failed to give the 25-year-old timely medical attention for the spinal injury he suffered while in their custody.

With his death, the 25-year-old joined a long list of black men killed under questionable circumstances during police encounters and became at least the fifth black man to die in police encounters in Baltimore since Batts took charge.

kms/gsw (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)