OTTAWA, Ont. -- John Rafferty is in lockdown with the rest of his colleagues after a gunman opened fire at Parliament Hill Wednesday morning.
Speaking quietly on the phone from a safe place in Ottawa, Rafferty told tbnewswatch.com that the NDP were in the middle of their weekly caucus meeting when the shooting began.
"We heard shots but that's all we heard and then we were shepherded away to a safe room," The Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP said.
"We don't have any details we're just sort of sequestered. We're in a safe room right now. I don't know when we'll get out or when we'll get details."
Tory MP Bob Zimmer has tweeted that the gunman was shot and killed, but that report could not be immediately verified.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper was rushed away from the building to an undisclosed location, officials in his office said.
Ottawa police confirmed they had a call at 9:52 a.m. with a report of shots fired.
The gunman reportedly ran towards Parliament Hill, which is currently under lockdown and surrounded by security.
A witness reported that a man drove up in a black vehicle, got out carrying a rifle and ran into the Centre Block.
Witnesses reported hearing shots fired in several different corridors. Some people fled the building by scrambling down scaffolding erected for renovations.
It is caucus morning on the Hill, meaning most MPs are in the Centre Block.
In Thunder Bay, constituency offices for both local Members of Parliament were closed as a security precaution shortly after 11 a.m.
In the clip below, MP Bruce Hyer (Green, Thunder Bay - Superior North) speaks with CKPR Radio from Ottawa, away from Parliament Hill.
--with files from The Canadian Press
