A blast of gunfire has killed one person and wounded at least 30 others at the end of a parade for Super Bowl winners the Kansas City Chiefs.

The shooting, which happened outside a landmark railroad station in Kansas City, Missouri, on a sunny Wednesday (US time) sent crowds of onlookers fleeing for safety.

Among them was 24-year-old Madison Anderes, who was watching the parade with her brother and mother before she ran for her life after hearing gunshots.

“At first we thought it was a string of fireworks,” Anderes told CNN.

Then a man standing in front of them turned around and yelled: “He’s got a gun! He’s got a gun!”

Then a second round of pops went off, this time much louder. Anderes was knocked to the ground as everyone around her started running.

“That’s when all chaos broke out. I felt like I was going to die, I felt like a sitting duck and I was going to get shot,” she said.

A local fire department official has told Reuters one of the gunshot victims has died and three more are in critical conditions.

Two armed people were taken into custody, police said on Wednesday.

Police and fire department officials confirmed at least 10 people were struck by gunshots near Union Station.

At least five of the injured were taken to University Health hospital in Kansas City, spokesman Keith King said. He said there was no information on the nature or extent of the injuries.

Children’s Mercy Kansas City was also receiving patients from the incident but could not provide a number, hospital spokesperson Lisa Augustine said.

“Shots were fired west of Union Station near the garage and multiple people were struck,” Kansas City police said in an initial post on X.

“We took two armed people into custody for more investigation.”

Eyewitness video posted on social media platforms showed pandemonium outside the station with dozens of uniformed police officers, weapons drawn, running into the building as scores of bystanders fled in the opposite direction.

Union Station, a 109-year-old Beaux Arts building that was once a major US rail hub for passenger and freight traffic, is now home to a museum and visiting attractions. It is also a terminal for Amtrak passenger service.

Its website describes its vision to “be Kansas City’s iconic symbol of inclusion, inspiration, lifelong learning, and its centre for civic celebration”.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson and his wife were nearby when the shooting happened. They were safe and secure afterward, Parson wrote on X, thanking law enforcement for the response.

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly was also at the rally when the shots were fired.

-with AAP