A tenant command inadvertently set off a mass notification system on Tuesday at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, causing widespread confusion and early conflicting reports about a possible active shooter on campus.
The incident led to a lockdown on the sprawling Bethesda, Md.,-based campus, where people were urged to hide in safe areas as authorities investigated the scene. Initial reports said the alarm was part of a drill, but by nightfall officials said the alarm had been a mistake.
“While preparing for an upcoming drill, the notification system was inadvertently enacted without containing the words ‘exercise’ or ‘drill,'” the U.S. Navy said in a statement. The people who saw the notification alerted security on campus, which then sent out a widespread alarm.
Reports of an active shooter came from the basement of building 19, also known as the “America Building.” Local police were sent to the scene to assist in the investigation, and the security team on campus cleared the building and found no indication of an active shooter, according to a spokesman at Walter Reed.
The alarm went off around 2 p.m., and final details of what had caused the mix-up came several hours later. The U.S. Navy originally tweeted that the incident was part of a scheduled drill.
“After investigating the call and the origin, NSA Bethesda has determined that this was a false alarm and not part of a scheduled drill as has been reported,” the Naval Support Activity Bethesda said in a statement.
News of a possible active shooter first came from the Twitter account of a Maryland congressman on the scene.
“I am currently at Walter Reed Medical in Bethesda where we’ve been told there is an active shooter,” tweeted Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md. “I am currently safe in a conference room w/ approx 40 others.”
I am currently at Walter Reed Medical in Bethesda where we’ve been told there is an active shooter. I am currently safe in a conference room w/ approx 40 others.
— Dutch Ruppersberger (@Call_Me_Dutch) November 27, 2018
Montgomery County Police confirmed to the Washington Examiner shortly after the tweet was sent that they had received a call of a possible active shooter at 2:27 p.m. on 911, and they said they were assisting military officials in responding to the incident.
“The nature of this incident has not yet been confirmed. … Officers have just arrived on the scene and begun assisting in the investigation,” a spokeswoman for the police department said at the time.
A spokesman for the medical center told the Washington Examiner before the final report was out that the campus had been on lockdown and an announcement over the speakers warned people that there was an active shooter on campus and urged them to find shelter. The spokesman said he did not hear gun shots or people screaming.
The medical center serves military personnel and has more than 7,000 healthcare staff. President Trump received his annual physical there in January.
Caitlin Yilek and Jamie McIntyre contributed.
