ROCHESTER, New Hampshire - A man claiming to have a bomb strapped to his chest seized several hostages at Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton's New Hampshire campaign office on Friday before releasing two in a tense standoff with police.
It was unclear whether there were any hostages remaining in the campaign office in Rochester, New Hampshire and police were still surrounding the building.
A woman, described as one of the hostages and said to be a campaign volunteer, emerged from the building and was quickly escorted to safety, witnesses said.
New Hampshire's WMUR television said a second hostage had been released but that it was unclear if others were being held by a man whom local media described as mentally unstable and who had told his son earlier in the day to "watch the news."
Clinton, a New York senator and former first lady, was not in New Hampshire and cancelled a speaking date in Virginia immediately after news of the incident broke.
"She's in Washington D.C.," said Secret Service spokesman Darrin Blackford, who had no further information on her whereabouts. "We're monitoring the situation in New Hampshire but its being treated as a local police matter," Blackford said.
The Rochester campaign offices of rival Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama and John Edwards were evacuated along with nearby businesses. Schools in the area locked their doors during the four-hour standoff.
