Lockdown is lifted at McGhee Tyson air base after earlier report of suspicious person
https://archive.is/wip/0OcRC
https://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/blount-county-reported-shooting-at-mcghee-tyson-airbase/51-29eeabc3-8b6b-46cd-9bde-cd834227427a
This is a developing story that will be updated as more information becomes available.
Author: WBIR Staff
Published: 12:16 PM EST January 15, 2020
Updated: 2:54 PM EST January 15, 2020
A report of a suspicious individual on McGhee Tyson's Air National Guard base prompted a lockdown Wednesday.
As of 2:48 p.m. Wednesday, the lockdown is lifted and the scene is clearing, according to Marian O'Briant, a spokesperson with the Blount County Sheriff's Office.
Lt. Col. Travers Hurst, public affairs officer for the 134th Air Refueling Wing, told 10News that at 11:15 a.m. there was a report of a suspicious person with a rifle on the base. They immediately went into lockdown, which is the standard operating procedure, and law enforcement immediately responded to sweep the base.
Hurst said nothing has been found, and despite some reports of an active shooter on the base, that does not appear to be the case.
There was a large law enforcement presence at the base, which is located adjacent to McGhee Tyson Airport. The airport is operating normally, with flights taking off and landing and no restrictions that we are aware of.
Several agencies were on the scene assisting air base security with checking the base, including Knoxville Police, Blount County Sheriff's Office, Alcoa Police, and McGhee Tyson security sweeping the area to determine what drove the report of a possible person with a rifle.
"Right now, they’re going through building to building checking things out and that’s standard for our exercises or a real-world situation, they’re making sure the students and everybody is safe providing any assistance they can provide," said Chief Master Sergeant Shaun Withers, a spokesperson with the 134th.
The Tennessee National Guard posted on social media that there are no reports of injuries.
Tenn. National Guard
@TNMilitaryDept
“Tenn. Nat. Guard security personnel are currently working w/state and federal law enforcement at McGhee Tyson Air Base on reports of suspicious activity. There are no reports of injuries. Situation is developing and more information will be released as it becomes available.”
Shaun Withers, Chief Masters Sergeant and trainer at TEC University, the training center on base, said information about the suspicious person was limited, and that authorities are conducting sweeps of the premises.
"'Lockdown lockdown lockdown' could be heard over the loudspeakers on the base. There isn’t a whole lot of contact going on because what you’re trying to do in an exercise or real-world situation, you don’t want to alert that shooter to where you’re at. So everyone immediately goes into a lockdown barricade," Withers said.
He also said while personnel were still on base checking to make sure everybody on base was safe, the training center had 100 percent accountability.
"I know the schoolhouse has 100 percent accountability on their personnel….if there’s any friends family that are worried about this…as of right now we have 100 percent accountability," Withers said. "I know they’re still going building to building and they search every nook and cranny in the building. Everything gets searched. These folks are very methodical, I don’t know how long that takes."
This schoolhouse is in reference to the I.G. Brown Training and Education Center is a detachment of the Air National Guard Readiness Center and is located at the air base.
At this hour, road to the base entrance has been blocked off by Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers.
This is a developing story that will be updated as more information becomes available.
Post by WBIRChannel10.