Police say at least five people shot at busy thoroughfare in Washington, DC 

Police have said at least five people have been shot in a busy thoroughfare in the centre of Washington, DC, by a suspected gunman who has since barricaded himself inside a building.

One person was killed, according to witnesses.

Local and federal law enforcement, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Secret Service, had cordoned off the area and were working to apprehend the suspected gunman, said Al Jazeera’s John Holman, reporting from the scene.

Authorities reportedly described the suspect as a white male wearing a grey shirt.

The shooting occurred on Thursday near Logan Circle, at the intersection of 15th Street NW and P Street, police said at 8:23am local time (13:28 GMT).

A witness told the Associated Press news agency he saw one person shot in the head inside a gym at the scene.

James Spellman was at the gym when he heard shots being fired. He said there were about 50 people in the gym at the time.

“Within seconds there was a man who fell to the ground, and a pool of blood came out,” he said. “One gym member rushed to help him. He was instantly dead. He had been shot in the neck.”

Spellman said he and other gym members ran out of the gym, and he said he heard more gunfire in the area of 15th Street. He said he heard about two shots fired in the gym and about five or six fired outside.

The attack took place about a mile from the United States’ White House during the rush hour commute.

Schools near the scene were placed on lockdown. Police issued a shelter-in-place order as law enforcement descended on the block.

“Go inside the nearest building, stay away from windows, and remain indoors until further notice,” it said.

The condition of the victims was not immediately available.

The attack comes as the administration of US President Donald Trump has made crime in the US capital a key issue during his second term.

That has included deploying the US National Guard across the city, a move Trump took after a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) official said he was assaulted in the early morning of August 2025.

The US president declared a crime emergency, which also included federalising control of the federal district’s local police force.

Several thousand National Guard troops have remained in the district, with Trump regularly claiming their presence has brought down crime. Local officials have said the National Guard has not been used in local law enforcement.

The White House did not immediately respond to Thursday’s attack.

In November of last year, a National Guard member was killed by a gunman while on duty near 17th and I Streets NW. A second National Guard member was wounded.

In October, another National Guard member was shot during a gunfight in southeast Washington, DC.