One man was fatally shot and several other people were wounded in a series of apparently unrelated shootings in different parts of the District late Wednesday afternoon, according to D.C. police.
Much of the gunfire occurred during a violent 90 minute time period starting about 4 p.m. in neighborhoods that include 16th Street Heights in Northwest, Mayfair in Northeast and Benning Ridge in Southeast.
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Bursts of gunfire later Wednesday evening damaged two windows at the Frank D. Reeves Municipal Building at 14th and U streets NW that houses offices for the fire chief. A spokeswoman said the chief was not in the building at the time. Police said no one was struck.
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The shootings in well-traveled commercial corridors and in residential neighborhoods sent residents racing to social media and calling 911, and come at a time of rising homicides and concern over violence that prompted the mayor to authorize overtime for police.
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The first of the afternoon shootings occurred about 4 p.m. in the 1400 block of Oglethorpe Street NW in 16th Street Heights, east of Rock Creek Park.
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Police said one man was critically injured, and that gunfire was reported on two other nearby streets, prompting authorities to close several roads for hours, including several blocks of 14th Street in the area.
About 4:30 p.m., police said a man was fatally shot in the 800 block of Kenilworth Terrace NE in Mayfair, near Route 295 and the Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens. Police identified the victim as Marquise Blackwell, 29, of Northeast Washington.
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Twenty minutes later, police said a man was shot and seriously wounded on O Street near North Capitol Street NW, in the Truxton Circle neighborhood. Shortly before 5:30 p.m., police said a woman was shot and wounded in the 4800 block of Texas Avenue SE, near East Capitol Street. Police said the woman was conscious when taken to a hospital.
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More gunfire was reported about 6:40 p.m. in the 1000 block of K Street NE, where a police report says several bullets struck a home, damaging a glass window and hitting a ceiling and floor on the inside. No one was struck.
And shortly after 7:30 p.m., police said several people called 911 to report gunfire along 14th and 15th streets near U and V streets in Northwest.
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Police said no one was wounded. But a police report says bullets struck two windows at the municipal building known as the Reeves Center in the 2000 block of 14th Street NW.
Thousands of bullets have been fired in this D.C. neighborhood. Fear is part of everyday life.
Police said they do not believe the building was targeted. A van parked out front also was struck.
The Reeves Center is situated along the bustling U Street corridor and includes a post office and several D.C. government services and agencies, including the headquarters for the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services.
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District officials plan to renovate the building for a mixed use of offices and apartments, and it is to serve as the new headquarters for the NAACP when it moves from Baltimore.
D.C. police are also investigating the death of a man whose body was found Wednesday on Fort Dupont Drive in Southeast Washington.
Police said an off-duty officer found the body shortly after 4 a.m. and that the victim had been shot. Authorities have not released the man’s name pending notification of relatives. Police said the death has been ruled a homicide.