Gym shooting in D.C. kills one, injures four as gunman dies in nearby apartment
Police responded to 15th Street Northwest within 30 seconds of the first call, finding one man dead inside VIDA Fitness.
By Meera Fletcher ·
One person was killed and four others were injured when a gunman opened fire at VIDA Fitness in the Logan Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C., this morning. The shooter, who police believe was a gym member, died after barricading himself in a nearby apartment building.
Jeffery W. Carroll, the interim chief of the Metropolitan Police Department, stated that the first call for help came in at 8 a.m. from people inside the gym. Officers and emergency responders arrived within 30 seconds. They found one adult man who had been shot inside the facility. A police spokeswoman later confirmed that the gunman died after shooting himself while hiding in an apartment.
It is currently unclear whether the four injured individuals were inside the gym or in the surrounding area. Carroll noted that the relationship between the shooter and the victims remains unknown and requires further investigation. The shooting took place on a block along 15th Street Northwest, which is lined with apartment buildings, a church, and local businesses.
Tinbete Ermyas, an editor at NPR, was working out at the gym when the incident began. He described hearing a very loud bang that shook the room. Some people initially thought weights had fallen, but the sound was too loud for that explanation. Screams followed shortly after. Ermyas and other gymgoers ran through an emergency exit into a laundry room, where they hid for about 20 minutes until police escorted them out.
As they exited the building, Ermyas saw the body of the man who had been shot. He described the victim as a regular attendee who was lying in a pool of blood. Ermyas said the scene was terrible and shocking to those who knew the man.
Oscar Vazquez, the manager of the neighboring Call Your Mother Deli, said he and his 22-year-old co-worker, Cesar Miranda, thought the fire alarm next door was a false start. Miranda estimated that they heard seven or eight gunshots. Vazquez said he tried to get as many people as possible into the deli for safety. He noted that many of their friends and customers live in the nearby apartment buildings.
Residents reported a massive law enforcement presence, including FBI agents and SWAT teams, swarming the area minutes after the gunfire. Emergency text messages ordered residents to shelter in place. That order was lifted at approximately 11:30 a.m. Police spent about an hour attempting to get the gunman to surrender before the final gunshot was heard.
