Whittier police standoff forces evacuations

WHITTIER, Calif. (KABC) -- Whittier police and Los Angeles County sheriff's personnel responded to a possible hostage situation in Whittier Wednesday afternoon.

A male suspect reportedly barricaded himself in an apartment near Whittier Boulevard and Greenleaf Avenue around 4 p.m. Police evacuated several residents and shut down a three-block area surrounding the building. As of 11 p.m., the standoff was still ongoing.

Whittier police said the incident was being treated as a possible hostage situation. They believe the suspect is holding a woman inside the apartment.

Authorities say they have been in communication with the suspect, but they aren't commenting on what may have motivated the standoff.

A neighbor says another resident told her she heard a disturbance and called police.

"She's the one that heard the lady yelling for help because he said he had a knife," said resident Anette Pacheco.

Some residents who couldn't get to their homes after work had to wait in the parking lot of a nearby convenience store.