(Reuters) - A suspect died from a gunshot wound on Saturday after he allegedly shot at a state trooper, who stopped to help the driver of a broken down vehicle along a northern Florida highway, authorities said.

The unidentified man fired several rounds from a handgun at a Florida Highway Patrol trooper along Interstate 75 in Micanopy, Florida, 15 miles (24 km) south of Gainesville, the Alachua County Sheriff said.

The trooper was uninjured during the incident that unfolded at about 8:30 a.m. local time, Alachua County Sheriff spokesman Art Forgey said.

Responding police surrounded the suspect in dense woods near the highway before he was fatally wounded. It was not immediately clear whether the gunman shot himself or was shot by police, according to Forgey.

Forgey said the shooter was associated with the broken down vehicle, but did not know whether he was the driver or a passenger.

A motive for the shooting was not immediately known, Forgey said.

The highway was shut down for several hours as police searched for the shooter in the woods.