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Gunman opens fire at Navy Yard in Washington, killing at least 4
A gunman armed with a rifle and perhaps a handgun opened fire Monday inside a building at the Washington Navy Yard — killing at least four people and wounding at least six more, including a security guard and a city police officer, authorities said.
SWAT officers swarmed the building, the headquarters of the Naval Sea Systems Command. The shooter was believed to be wounded, a source told NBC News, and crews were combing the facility to make sure there were no other gunmen.
It was not clear whether the gunman was civilian or military.
Chaos enveloped the surrounding neighborhood. Flights were briefly grounded at Reagan National Airport, and nearby schools and the headquarters of the Department of Transportation were locked down. Farther away, police stepped up security on the Capitol grounds.
A naval security guard was among those shot and was hit in both legs, U.S. military officials said. Washington city police told WRC, the NBC affiliate in Washington, that one of their officers was also among those shot. It was not clear how many of the others shot were civilian and how many were military.
NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reports on the U.S. Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. and shares the latest information. NBC's Kasie Hunt also joins the conversation.
Tim Hogan, a spokesman for Rep. Steven Horsford of Nevada, posted photos to his Twitter account of people tending to at least one person down on a street corner.
The Navy said on its Twitter feed that three shots were fired at 8:20 a.m. ET at the Sea Systems Command headquarters. Almost an hour later, the Navy still characterized the shooter as "active." The military officials said that the gunman may have been armed with an AR-15, a military-style assault rifle.
About 3,000 people work in the Navy building, the Navy said. They were ordered to stay in place. WRC video showed a medical helicopter lifting someone off a roof.
The White House said President Barack Obama was getting regular briefings.
The Naval Sea Systems Command builds, buys and maintains ships and submarines and their combat systems. The Navy Yard is along the Anacostia River in Washington, near the Washington Nationals baseball stadium.
Gunman opens fire at Navy Yard in Washington, killing at least 4 - U.S. News