UPDATE: As noted by several commenters, the media coverage indicates that police found no shooter, and that the incident likely stemmed from a “bad call.” So probably a false alarm or crank call. So thank goodness for it not being a real event.
Nevertheless, all Senate office buildings have been on lock down for over an hour, and could continue to be on lock down for some time to come. This is happening at the end of people’s work day, so employees of the Senate could find themselves stuck in D.C. well into the evening. Many of these folks rely on public transit for their commutes, so a disruption like this can make it really difficult to get home. Non-event events like these still have real world consequences, even if they aren’t life and limb.
As a federal employee whose work station is on Capitol Hill, I first got this as an internal security threat alert on my computer. I’m safe at home teleworking today, as is my wife, also a federal employee, so I hoped it was nothing.
Seems it might not be nothing.
Shelter-in-place is the current command. And, of course, current events give rise to the question of timing.
Capitol police are currently sweeping the Russell building. Hopefully it will all turn out to be a very unfunny hoax.