Police have arrested a man in Eltham following reports he was observed with a chainsaw outside St Helena Secondary College.

The school was placed into lockdown just before 1pm.

The man evaded police and hid in a nearby property, where he remained in a standoff with police for several hours.

Maddie, a student at St Helena Secondary College, said school had finished early for the last day of term and students were on their way out of the campus when the alarm went off.

“Kids were leaving and then teachers were telling everyone to get into classroom and lock the doors,” she told 3AW’s Denis Walter.

Nine News reporter Sam Cucchiara said the man with the chainsaw was behaving erratically before police arrived.

“A number of witnesses have told me that earlier, what sparked all of this, was he was swinging that chainsaw around,” he said.

“He was hitting some cars of parents who were coming to pick up their kids.”

No one was injured during the incident.

The man was arrested at an address on Parry Road without further incident and will be taken to hospital for assessment.

Press PLAY for more.

A man is currently holed up inside a home in Eltham North after earlier wielding a chainsaw through the street. Critical Incident Response Officers are negotiating with him. At least one school is in lockdown. @9NewsMelb pic.twitter.com/0ChczBpu9a

— Sam Cucchiara (@SamCucchiara9) June 28, 2019