'People used furniture to block door': Eyewitnesses recall terrifying moments during Manhattan building shooting; video shows chaotic scenes

Five people, including a police officer and the suspected gunman, died following a shooting incident on Monday in Midtown Manhattan in the US, news agency AFP reported.

"Four people, including a New York Police Department officer, were killed in today's shooting in Midtown Manhattan," a law enforcement source told CNN. The source added that the suspected gunman died from what is believed to be a "self-inflicted injury."

The suspect was identified as Shane Tamura , of Nevada.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said on X that an officer had been "struck down" and extended his "deepest sympathies" to the officer's family. However, a spokeswoman for the department said she could neither confirm nor deny that an officer had been killed.

Also read: Five people, including a police officer, killed in Manhattan shooting incident; suspect neutralised

Police said the situation was under control and that the shooter was dead. "At this time, the scene has been contained and the lone shooter has been neutralized," police commissioner Jessica Tisch posted on X. No further details were given about the suspect's identity.

Video footage from the area showed a large number of police officers on site. People were seen running away while officers moved towards the building.

🚨 BREAKING: An NYPD officer has DlED after being SH0T by a gunman in Manhattan, per NYPost

There are at least six other victims in unknown conditions.

Pray for the victims and their families 🙏🏻pic.twitter.com/ZXTWvauwsi

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) July 29, 2025

Another video showed nearby blocks filled with police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, and emergency workers.

One video showed officers performing CPR on a person lying in the street.

🚨 BREAKING: NYPD seen performing CPR on a gunshot victim in Manhattan as man with rifle opens fire

At least one officer and MULTIPLE civilians have been shot, and the assailant is still reportedly at large, possibly on the 32nd floor of a Midtown bldg

Pray for these victims 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/EE8TjDdrlv

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) July 28, 2025

Witnesses were quoted as saying by the AFP that the shooting took place inside an office building that houses the Blackstone investment company.

During the evening rush hour, police used a drone near Park Avenue. Many officers were seen in the area, some carrying long guns and wearing protective gear. Several ambulances were stationed nearby, and helicopters were flying above, as per AFP report.

Also read | Who was Shane Tamura? What we know about the Manhattan building shooter

Eyewitnesses describe panic

"Everyone was confused with like, 'wait, what's going on?' And then someone finally realized that it's online, that someone walked in with a machine gun," one witness was quoted as saying by the news agency AFP.

"He walked right into a building right next door. We saw the photo of him walking through the same area that I walked through to get lunch here. You would think it won't happen to you, and then it does."

Another witness, a woman who declined to give her name as she left the area, told AFP: "I was in the building. He went floor by floor."

Office workers on the 33rd floor of a Park Avenue building in Manhattan used furniture to barricade their doors after a gunman entered their floor. The suspect, accused of shooting an NYPD officer and a civilian, died by suicide on that very floor of that building, which houses… pic.twitter.com/El41JkSRzl

— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) July 29, 2025

Meanwhile, another witness, Jessica Chen told ABC News she was watching a presentation with dozens of other people on the second floor when she “heard multiple shots go off in quick succession from the first floor.”

She and others ran into a conference room and barricaded tables against the door.

“We were honestly really, really scared,” she said, adding that she texted her parents to tell them that she loves them.