Umbrella prompts gun scare, sends Kirkland hospital into lockdown



KIRKLAND, Wash. -- It was an umbrella.

EvergreenHealth was placed on lockdown in an abundance of caution Wednesday morning as police investigated reports that someone showed up to the hospital with a weapon.



People inside the hospital reportedly locked themselves in rooms while police searched for a gunman.

EvergreenHealth shared a photo of a man with what some thought was a gun. He saw himself on social media and called Kirkland police to tell them that he had only an umbrella -- no weapons.

EvergreenHealth released this statement after the incident:

"The lockdown at EvergreenHealth Kirkland has been lifted. We have located the gentleman in question and the unidentifiable object was confirmed to be an umbrella with a handle that is shaped like a sword. We took all necessary steps to exercise absolute caution to keep our patients, visitors, staff and community safe and we greatly appreciate the support of everyone to help ensure our campus was safe. Additionally, we thank the Kirkland Police and the local and national media for helping us to inform our community and ensure this message was shared to keep our hospital safe.

"EvergreenHealth will resume care as usual today and this situation has been resolved. We again thank you for all of your support in taking necessary steps to keep our community safe.

"We invite you to please share this update broadly by telling your family and friends and by sharing on social media to help to notify the community that lockdown is lifted."