A person has been taken into custody after reports of a possible firearms sighting inside a parked ambulance at Auckland’s Waitākere Hospital.
Police were called just after 1pm after receiving a report of a person alone inside an ambulance parked at Waitākere Hospital with a possible firearm.
They were being taken to the hospital by ambulance staff, who “observed the possible firearm in a bag”, a police spokesperson told 1News in a statement.
“The hospital self-initiated a lockdown and police quickly took one person into custody without issue.”
A St John spokesperson said the crew “correctly followed their dynamic risk assessment training and worked quickly with hospital staff and the New Zealand Police”.
“We are working directly with the staff involved to offer welfare support following this incident. Hato Hone St John has a zero-tolerance policy towards threats, abuse or assaults on our staff.”
In a statement, Te Whatu Ora group director operations – Waitematā, Brad Healey, confirmed to 1News the hospital went into a “temporary lockdown”.
“The safety of our people and patients is our top priority,” Healey said.
“During this time, we worked closely with Hato Hone St John to ensure patients were diverted to North Shore Hospital to receive care.”
Inquiries into the incident are ongoing.
