A barricade situation between and armed man and police left parents fearing for their boys' safety after the children were stuck in the apartment near UCLA Tuesday.
The two young boys were trapped in the apartment building in Westwood after SWAT responded to a report of an assault with a deadly weapon.
Squad after squad of tactical officers headed inside while snipers waited on the roof after an armed man went into his ex-girlfriend's apartment in the 1000 block of Tiverton near UCLA, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Dale Robinson, father of 10-year-old Luca, was stuck outside the perimeter that police had set up.
"The boys are inside. I'm telling them to be calm," Robinson said.
The best method the boys had of communicating to Dale outside was with a flashlight through the window.
The miraculous part was how social media came to the rescue.
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NBC4 reporter Gadi Schwartz used his live-streaming Periscope app to feature the parents stuck outside.
"Your mother and I can't wait to hug you," Dale said via Gadi's Periscope app. "You guys are safe, everything will be OK."
Dale told the boys to watch Periscope so the parents could send messages.
Finally after five hours, the LAPD gave the all-clear, as the armed man was not found inside.
The worried parents made their way in, embracing their children.
"You were so brave!" Robinson said as she kissed her son.
The boys passed the time by playing video games and doing homework.
"We were half-worried, and half the time we played video games," Luca said.
At 9 p.m., LAPD called off the search and said the community was safe, but would not provide details on the suspected armed man's location.
Police confirmed it was a "domestic situation that escalated."
