The Norfolk Naval Shipyard is secured following two unrelated incidents, leading to closure

NORFOLK NAVAL SHIPYARD – The Norfolk Naval Shipyard was placed on lockdown for about 20 minutes Thursday after a gun was found at the shipyard and, in a separate incident, a shipyard employee made threats against his colleagues, according to shipyard officials.

According to shipyard officials, a firearm was found in a private contractor's vehicle in the shipyard's industrial area around 8:30 a.m. After employees reported the weapon to base police, officers recovered the weapon and arrested the contractor, officials say.

Around the same time, an employee made a threat against the shipyard and its colleagues, according to officials.

Shipyard officials say the two unrelated security incidents resulted in a false report of an active threat and a lockdown was initiated shortly before noon.

On display: Thousands are deployed with the USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group

The USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group is deployed from Naval Station Norfolk

Law enforcement responded and determined the active threat was false. The lockdown was lifted around 12:15 p.m., officials say.

The area is safe and there were no injuries in either incident, shipyard managers say.

Officials said they recovered the weapon found in the contractor's vehicle and arrested the contractor. They are investigating how the weapon was brought to the base.

The shipyard employee who reportedly made threats is no longer at the shipyard and his access to the facility has been revoked, officials added.