WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — United States (US) Secret Service agents bundled Donald Trump from the stage as shots rang out Saturday evening at a media gala, in what the president later described as an attack by a “would-be assassin”.

Armed guards opened fire at the gunman who charged through security screening just outside the ballroom of the hotel, where Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, many senior government officials and hundreds of other black-tie guests had gathered.

People dived under tables in chaotic scenes as Secret Service teams swarmed into the black-tie White House Correspondents’ Dinner held annually at the Washington Hilton in the US capital.

“A man charged a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons, and he was taken down by some very brave members of the Secret Service,” Trump told a press conference at the White House shortly after the incident.

“They seem to think he was a lone wolf, and I feel that too,” he said, after posting video of the gunman sprinting past security as guards drew their weapons and opened fire. The man was detained at the scene.

Trump said one officer was shot at close range but appeared to not be seriously injured. He added that the venue was “not a particularly secure” facility as questions swirled about the president’s safety after repeated security lapses.

Trump said at a hastily arranged news conference at the White House that he first thought the noise was a tray being dropped before he realised it was gunfire, and he described the suspect as a “would-be assassin”.

He said he planned to re-schedule the media gala within a month despite the security scare.

As the incident erupted, tactical teams with guns drawn took position on the stage where Trump had been sitting during dinner before he was evacuated.

Police swarmed the Washington Hilton hotel, and helicopters hovered overhead.

The security breach occurred after the welcoming speech and during dinner, before Trump was due to speak.

Trump administration officials were evacuated first as confusion and concern spread through the partying guests.

A cabinet official, Mehmet Oz, told journalists “shots fired upstairs” as he was rushed out by security.

Trump was the target of an assassination attempt during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania in 2024. A gunman fired several shots, killing a rally goer and lightly wounding the president in the ear.

A few months later, another man was arrested after a Secret Service agent saw the barrel of a rifle poking from the bushes on the perimeter of the West Palm Beach golf course where Trump was playing a round.

The Washington Hilton where Saturday’s gala was taking place was the site where Republican President Ronald Reagan was shot by a would-be assassin in 1981.

Organisers at first told guests that the dinner would continue, before announcing it had been postponed.

The White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) invited Trump this year despite his repeated attacks on the media.

Unlike all other presidents from the past 100 years, Trump had never attended while in office.

The “Nerd Prom” — as attendees dub it — brings together hundreds of Washington journalists and media executives to raise funds for scholarships and awards.

The event often has a comedian joking about the president, who traditionally gets his own back with some jokes, though no comedian was booked this year.