4 Shot at Chicago Transportation Center

A gunman shot four people at the Ogilvie Transportation Center in downtown Chicago Friday afternoon in a hostage drama that delayed 50,000 rail commuters.

Three victims were hospitalized in critical condition; a woman shot in the foot was in good condition; and the gunman was shot by a police SWAT team, said Chicago Police Supt. Phil Cline.

The Chicago Tribune said the gunman was shot dead.

Cline said the gunman was armed with a snub-nosed revolver, a knife and a hammer, and may have shot himself after being confronted by officers.

The shootings began when a man was shot in the head on the 38th floor of the building at the offices of Wood, Phillips, Katz, Clark and Mortimer, a Virginia-based patent law firm, WLS-TV reported.

The hostage incident snarled rush-hour traffic around the busy West Loop commuter rail terminal. Some 50,000 commuters who normally ride north- and northwest bound trains were affected. Trains finally were allowed to fill up with passengers and were making all stops, a Metra commuter spokesman said.

Workers in the building at 500 W. Madison, which houses a Metra commuter rail station and the Citibank Group Center, were told to lock their office doors during the drama although some were evacuated floor-by-floor.