(Reuters) - The Little Rock Air Force Base in Arkansas lifted a lockdown after 4-1/2 hours on Wednesday when reports of a suspicious individual turned out to be unfounded, the base said in a statement.
"We responded with the necessary caution to secure our Airmen, their families and Air Force resources," Colonel Patrick Rhatigan, 19th Airlift Wing commander, said in the statement.
"After a thorough search of the base we found the report no longer credible."
An emergency response test had been planned on the base in the morning, but was canceled when the real-life scenario occurred.
During the lockdown from 11:45 a.m. to 4:10 p.m., people on base were told not to leave their buildings. During most of the lockdown, no traffic was allowed on or off the base.
The base, northeast of Little Rock, houses the C-130 Combat Airlift and other Air Force units.
(Writing by Fiona Ortiz; Editing by Susan Heavey, Jim Loney and Peter Cooney)
