Tactical Units Search Rayburn Building

WASHINGTON - The Rayburn Office Building is being searched after police received one phone call that shots had been fired.

"The report is that shots were fired" at 10:30 a.m. EDT in the garage of the Rayburn House Office Building, said Capitol Police spokeswoman Sgt. Kimberly Schneider.

"We're searching inside the building right now," Schneider said during a noon news conference.

"We have several tactical units inside. We have not gotten any reports of anybody being captured, anybody being arrested. We have not identified anybody who might have a weapon on them."

The report was called into Capitol Police call dispatch center.

The search that is underway includes the entire Rayburn Building, including a firing range that is in the building. The U.S. Capitol Police Department's Containment & Emergency Response Team maintains an indoor shooting range in the basement of the Rayburn building, according to the department's Web site.

"Right now we want to err on the side of caution," Schneider said. "Lives could be at risk. If we have a gunman in the building we certainly want to find him. It's premature to assume that it may not be a gunman."

People inside the Rayburn Building are sheltering in place.

All D.C. public and private schools in the area also are locked down.

Capitol Police say one woman was taken away from the scene in an ambulance, but they say she was not a gunshot victim.

Montgomery County Council member Howard Dennis, who works for the Government Reform Committee, tells WTOP his office in Rayburn is locked down.

"We got the beeps as soon as the gunshots were heard, and actually they were preceded by one of our staffers having seen the cops running down the hallway -- appearing to be chasing someone," Dennis said. "We all got the e-mail to shelter in place."

"Over time, there have been incidents and tests, and buildings have been cleared, and alerts over substances that have been found ... so we are used to it. But this seems to be the most urgent situation that we have dealt with," he says.

"When these things started happening a few years ago, some people were nervous and apprehensive. I would say that is not the mood here. The mood is very calm and very realistic -- we are in good hands. We will keep the doors locked until we are advised otherwise."

The Capitol building which had been closed for less than an hour has reopened.

When the incident started, the Senate was in session, but the House was not.

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The following is the e-mail that went out to All House Staff

Subject: An Emergency Exists for the Rayburn HOB - Shelter in Place Importance: High

This is a message from the U.S. Capitol Police

1. If you are in the Rayburn HOB then Shelter in Place. Quickly move into the nearest interior office space or interior hallway and away from windows. The Capitol Police are investigating reports of gunfire in the Rayburn HOB.
2. If nearby, grab Go-Kits and personal belongings.
3. Close doors behind you, but do not lock.
4. Remain calm.
5. Await further instructions. Do not leave the building.

The following is the e-mail that went out to All Senate Staff

Subject: Update - Report of Gunfire in Rayburn

The US Capitol Police are continuing to investigate the report of gunfire in the Rayburn House Office Building. The Capitol Building is open and accessible, but the Rayburn HOB continues to be closed.

All staff and other personnel are directed to avoid the Rayburn HOB until further notice.

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(Copyright 2006 by WTOP and The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)