Niagara County Sheriff Jim Voutour and Lockport Police Chief Larry Eggert consult with members of the NCSO tactical unit before it entered a home on High Street where a standoff had occurred. (ENP STAFF PHOTOS)

BY SCOTT LEFFLER
scott.leffler@eastniagarapost.com

---

A member of the NCSO tactical unit stands behind an LPD car at a standoff  earlier today on High Street.

Two men are being held by the Lockport Police Department for questioning following a standoff at 117 High Street.

The situation started around 4 o'clock this afternoon when a street fight broke out near the corner of High and Pine streets. The fight involved between seven and 10 people, some of whom had baseball bats and at least one of whom was believed to have had a gun.

"Initial reports was the fight was involving baseball bats," LPD Chief Larry Eggert said. "As officers got here, they were told there was gunfire involved, too. We're not quite even sure how many shots were fired."

Some involved fled into the High Street home and others dispersed, police said.

A dog stands in Pine Street, oblivious to its surroundings. In the background, a tactical unit had just entered 117 High Street — the brown house. They would later come out empty handed.

"Obviously the people didn't come out of the house right away so they set up a perimeter and called in the SWAT Team," Eggert said. "Hostage negotiator Mike Stover was able to make contact with the people in the house. After a few minutes of talking to them, they came out one at a time. There were five people in the house including a little baby. ... They followed (Stover's) commands to the letter and (he) just walked them out."

Still, the Niagara County Sheriff's Office SWAT team, comprised of members of the Sheriff's Office and five members from LPD, went into the home around 5:35 p.m. They came out empty handed about 18 minutes later.

Eggert said they had been told the house was already empty but the tactical unit was sent in as a precaution.

"There were eight or 10 people fighting out here," Eggert said. "We weren't sure how many people ran into the house. We pulled out a total of five. Even though we were told there were no more in there, we can't assume that."

Police cordoned off 117 High Street during the event as well as a house on the northwest corner of Pine and High streets afterwords while detectives looked for evidence. Eggert said that police were still searching for a weapon around 6:30 p.m.

Police will question the detained people "and then we'll see where it goes from there," Eggert said.

The tactical unit from the Niagara County Sheriff's Office arrived shortly after 5 p.m.

---

There's more photos here.