A man has died after a gunman opened fire in a suburban street in Rotterdam.

The 32-year-old victim died shortly after police arrived at the scene of the incident in Rechthuislaan, in the Katendrecht area, at around 9.30pm on Sunday.

Police said dozens of shots were fired by a single shooter, who is believed to have fled on a scooter. A burned-out scooter was found several kilometres away later that evening.

The entire neighbourhood was sealed off as a precaution while police carried out investigations at the scene. A man who was arrested for driving with dimmed lights was later released after it was found he had nothing to do with the incident.