A SWAT standoff that lasted more than four hours in Reseda came to an end Wednesday afternoon when a barricaded man surrendered to police.
Los Angeles police and a SWAT unit swarmed the street in front of an apartment building in the 17000 block of Sherman Way about 12:20 p.m., police said.
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Residents said they heard two to four shots fired. Reseda Elementary School was placed on lockdown at 12:40 p.m. as police tried to get the man to come outside.
"That's why everyone had to evacuate, because he's shooting like crazy in the air," witness Irma Ramirez said.
Everyone was evacuated from the building except for Machika Washington's mother, who was asleep when the evacuations took place.
The woman's mother told her daughter what could be heard from inside the apartment.
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"All these guys have guns pointed on the apartment, and they're screaming at him to pick up the phone, answer his phone, and my mom can hear him from his apartment since he's so close to her, screaming, 'Help,'" Washington said.
Washington flew home from Florida earlier on Wednesday and arrived to the standoff.
"I haven't even been to my apartment yet. All my luggage is still here," she said. "I just got off the plane."
Non-lethal bullets and tear gas forced the man out of the apartment about 4:30 p.m., police said.
No injuries were reported in the standoff.
