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ADELANTO, Calif. — A Southern California sheriff's deputy was shot and wounded early Thursday while investigating gunfire in the Mojave Desert city of Adelanto, authorities said. Two men were arrested.

Deputy Robert Jahn was pulled to safety by other deputies, flown to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton where he was in critical but stable condition after surgery, San Bernardino County Sheriff John Mcmahon told reporters.

A single round went through Jahn's abdomen and struck several organs, Mcmahon said.

The incident began when Jahn and another deputy conducting a traffic stop heard gunfire and determined it was coming from an apartment. Other deputies were called in to assist.

"It's my understanding as he and his partners were approaching the apartment gunfire erupted from inside the apartment and he was struck at that point," Mcmahon said.

Other deputies got their wounded colleague out of the line of fire and rushed him to a helicopter, he said.

It was not known whether the initial gunfire during the traffic stop was directed at the deputies, he said.

"We're not sure exactly what the details were but multiple bursts of gunfire came from that apartment," he said.

Two 26-year-old men from Los Angeles were arrested and a handgun was recovered.

"There's no indication they were involved in any other crime at the time of the gunfire initially but there's obviously more to the story that we'll figure out," Mcmahon said.

The sheriff said a SWAT team went apartment to apartment in the building but he did not disclose details about how the arrests were made. He said there were other people present who were not involved.

Mcmahon said it was not known why the two Los Angeles residents were in Adelanto. The small city in the high desert Victor Valley along U.S. 395 is about a 90-mile (145-kilometer) drive from Los Angeles.

The sheriff said it was the third time in 14 days that his deputies have been fired on by suspects.

"It's important to remember that we have a great deal of community support in the county of San Bernardino but there are some dangerous people on the street," he said.