Report of active shooter at Senate office spurs fruitless search

WASHINGTON (CN) — Authorities quickly evacuated staffers from the Senate’s Washington office complex Wednesday afternoon in response to what U.S. Capitol Police said was a “possible active shooter” in one of the buildings.

Drawn out by what has been billed as a “concerning 911” call that reported an active shooter, Capitol police tweeted that the reports of gunshots remain unconfirmed. Metro D.C. police officers responded to the call as well.

As of 4:17 p.m., Capitol police had completed their search of the Senate buildings and were preparing to reopen them to staff, according to another tweet. “There is no active threat at this time,” the agency said.

Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger said the call that precipitated the scare appears to have been bogus. The caller reported a shooter wearing body armor in the Hart Senate Office Building, located just steps from the Capitol and Supreme Court.

Although more than 200 officers searched the Hart, Dirksen and Russell Senate office buildings, they had uncovered no evidence of any such shooter, Manger told reporters. “We’ve found nothing concerning,” he said. “We’ve gotten nobody that actually heard shots and certainly no victims.”

Both houses of Congress began their August recess period this week. The return of lawmakers to their home states has left the office buildings on Capitol Hill less populated than usual, but some Washington-based staffers, reporters and other congressional staff remain on site.

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