Armed Atlanta firefighter surrenders, ending SWAT standoff outside APD headquarters

A SWAT situation ended peacefully Tuesday after an armed Atlanta firefighter surrendered outside Atlanta Police Department headquarters and the Atlanta Fire Rescue station, authorities said.

The firefighter, whose name was not provided, was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital for an evaluation, police spokeswoman TaSheena Brown told AJC.com.

The incident began when police were notified by Atlanta Fire Rescue that one of their employees “was in crisis,” Brown said. Officers found the firefighter armed with a handgun while sitting in a vehicle.

The vehicle was near APD headquarters, which is located between Pryor and Peachtree streets.

The activity shut down Pryor between Garnett Street and Trinity Avenue for about an hour Tuesday afternoon. The road began to reopen about 5 p.m., the department said on Twitter.