of man in wheelchair with bomb holds 5 hostage at wytheville post office

Man in wheelchair with bomb holds 5 hostage at Va. post office: A man strapped with explosives is holding 5 hostages in a post office in Wytheville, Virginia.

A man in a wheelchair with plastic explosives strapped to his chest is holding five hostages in a post office in a small town in southwestern Virginia, officials and media are reporting.

Three blocks of downtown Wytheville were evacuated this afternoon. Several shots were heard, but there were no immediate reports of injuries.

The Wytheville Enterprise reports that the gunman has five pounds of C-4 plastic explosives, enough to "take out the whole block," a witness said, quoting a police officer.

Virginia State Police sent in a SWAT team and a bomb technician. Officers armed with high-powered rifles have surrounded the post office.

The unidentified man is holding two customers and three employees, a spokesman for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service told the Associated Press. He has made no demands other than to ask for a pizza.