hostage situation in Poughkeepsie NY

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Stabbings, hostage situation in Poughkeepsie  

POUGHKEEPSIE – There is a hostage situation ongoing with several people reported to have been stabbed at an address at Manitou Avenue in the City of Poughkeepsie. A man inside reportedly is armed with a gun, according to a neighbor.

A police negotiator and SWAT team are on the scene.

City police say a man is holed up inside a Poughkeepsie home with a child in what is being described as a hostage situation.

City police Chief Ronald Knapp said the man remains inside a residence at 30 Manitou Avenue with a child. The only known weapon is a knife, Knapp said.

Knapp said he believes the child is 5 years old.

Knapp said two other individuals were taken to a local hospital with non life-threatening injuries. He did not say which hospital or the nature of the injuries.

Knapp said all of the individuals are known to each other.

What happens next "is all on him," Knapp said of the individual inside.

Police surrounded the home shortly before noon today.

A man who lives in a second-floor apartment of the home said a family of five lives on the first floor. Victor Sebastian, 32, said the family includes a man, a woman, two high school-aged daughters and a young boy.

Sebastian said he was not inside the house when the situation developed.

City police responded with the department's mobile command unit. The city fire department, Mobile Life and Dutchess County Sheriff's Office have also responded.

The eastbound arterial was closed to one lane as a result of the incident.

Check back as more details develop.