Reports of an “active shooter” were being called for at the Ravenna VA Output Clinic on Wednesday morning according to police scanner calls, leading to the Ravenna Police Department to close off an area of North Chestnut Street near Ravenna High School.
The clinic is located at 6751 N. Chestnut St.
Chief Deputy Ralph Spidalieri of the Portage County Sheriff’s Office said deputies arrived at the scene helping Ravenna Police with traffic control and stopping individuals from approaching the area. Spidaileri said no shots were actually fired as far as he knew, but he didn’t have much information.
The Ravenna VA Clinic posted on social media that it will be closed today due to an “emergency situation”.
The clinic is asking patients to not come in today and have also said that staff are sheltering in place.
Ravenna High School is taking precautions due to the situation as they are in what Principal Beth Coleman calls a “soft lock down.”
“Ravenna High School is currently in a ‘soft lock down’ as a precautionary measure due to a situation in the area,” Coleman told parents. “No students or staff are in danger. The soft lock down means no visitors are able to enter the building, and no students or staff are able to leave the building until the situation is resolved. The Ravenna Police Department has the situation under control. We are in constant communication with them, and will lift the soft lock down as soon as we can. We do not anticipate any changes in our dismissal procedures today.”
Armed individual detained by police
The Ravenna Police Department took an armed individual into custody outside the Ravenna VA Clinic.
A spokesperson from the VA Clinic has confirmed that the situation was resolved at around 10:15 A.M.
There were no injuries reported.
The situation started around 8:15 A.M. when an employee from the clinic was walking into work and noticed a man kneeling outside according to a press release sent from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.
“The VA employee immediately notified the clinic’s security officer who went out to talk with the man,” the press release explained. “At that time, the man fired one shot into the air near the flagpole outside the clinic. The security guard ran back into the building, secured the building, called local authorities and began enacting the VA’s emergency response plan.”
Police responded to the scene where the man surrendered.
The area that was closed during the time of the active shooter being outside of the Clinic has now been reopened.