A man was being rushed by ambulance to a local hospital after shooting himself once following a more than eight-hour standoff at his southwest Decatur apartment Thursday, police said.

The man, whose name was not released, shot himself once in the mouth or chin area with a .22-caliber pistol, said Lt. John Crouch, a police spokesman He was sitting on the stairs leading to the upper floor of Apt. 504 at Brookridge Apartments while police waited outside the doorway to the apartment, where they had earlier removed the door, Crouch said.

"Our negotiators had been talking to him off and on. They heard a gunshot, rushed in and secured the weapon. After that, firefighters rushed in and began first aid," Crouch said.