Employees and shoppers told NBC Chicago they were barricaded inside stores and stock rooms as the lockdown at the suburban mall went into effect.

SKOKIE, Ill. - There were no injuries after a verbal altercation at Westfield Old Orchard Mall in north suburban Skokie prompted a police response and temporary lockdown on Tuesday afternoon. About an hour after the initial incident, workers and patrons were given the "all clear" and normal mall operations resumed.