By Michael O’Brien, NBC News rest of story here
The United States Capitol was placed on lockdown mid-Thursday afternoon following reports of shots fired in the vicinity of the chamber.
The reports of gunshots were unconfirmed. The House recessed shortly after indications of gunshots. The Senate went into a quorum call — that is, dispensed momentarily with its official business — shortly thereafter.
Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill tweeted: Shots fired outside the Capitol. We are in temporary lock down.
Colorado Rep. Jared Polis tweeted: There had been some short of shooting here at the capital, we r on lockdown awaiting more info
Congress has been locked for the past week and a half in a contentious debate over funding the government, a disagreement in which contributed to a government shutdown that came to pass at the end of Monday. MORE HERE
UPDATE: Breaking news
According to law enforcement sources, the incident may have started when someone tried to ram the gate at the White House before fleeing to the Capitol.
A female gunman is reportedly dead on the scene and the lockdown has been lifted.
