Man shoots Times Square steps as ‘people run for their lives’

A man was shot dead and badly injured on the doorstep of Times Square on Thursday as terrified bystanders fled, according to police and witnesses.

Around 5:35 p.m., gunfire rang out at the corner of 44th Street and Eighth Avenue near the Shake Shack store, according to police and witnesses.

“There was a crowd of people trying to escape,” witness Will Colon told the Daily News.

The man, who is still being identified by the police, was shot in the torso. According to witnesses, he hobbled the block to the south before losing consciousness.

“It was a couple of young guys who were shooting at him,” Colon said. “His body was lying right on the sidewalk. He was shaking face up.”

The two gunmen walked south along Eighth Avenue and turned right onto West 43rd Street, sources said.

“It doesn’t look like he was going to do it,” Colon said of the victim.

Paramedics rushed him to Mount Sinai West in critical condition, police said.

Police were still working to find the shooters early Thursday evening.

This is an evolving story.