Lockdown lifted at Capitol building after gunshots fired; several injured

The US Capitol was placed on security lockdown on Thursday after what senators and journalists said were shots fired outside Washington's seat of Congress.

About half an hour after the incident began, the security lockdown at the Capitol was eased and the doors reopened.

Photo credit: AFP

Emergency vehicles converged on the scene, focused on the north side of the iconic landmark, where an AFP photographer saw visitors scattering and ducking for cover.

Photo credit: AFP
Just over a mile away, the White House was also placed in lockdown, with Secret Service agents in tactical gear deploying around the building.

Photo credit: AFP
Senator Sherrod Brown told AFP he had been walking with a colleague from a nearby senatorial annex when he had heard shots and been forced to take cover behind an SUV.

Photo credit: AFP

Every minute or so, the Capitol Police made a loudspeaker announcement: "If you are in an office building, remain sheltered in place."

Photo credit: AFP
Outside the Dirksen office building, which houses senators' offices, staff members not sent home by the US government shutdown could be seen taking cover behind trees and vehicles.

Photo credit: AP
Photo credit: AP

Seen from the US Capitol, tourists flee as Capitol Police are seen outside of the Senate in Washington, DC following reports of a shooting.
A police car that struck a barricade blocks Constitution Avenue as U.S. Capitol Police investigate the shooting outside of the US Capitol.
This framegrab courtesy of Alhurra Television, shows a black car speeding away from police near the US Capitol.

Capitol Hill police officers look at a car following a shooting on Capitol Hill.
Police inspect a car on the median of Constitution Ave in front of the Hart Senate Office Building.
A view of the scene with a US Capitol Police car (top) and a black Infinity after the shooting.