The Capitol building in Washington, which houses both the House of Representatives and the Senate, was briefly evacuated following a false alarm that led the Capitol Police to track a plane posing a "potential threat," before it was confirmed that there was no danger. The Capitol Police issued an initial statement ordering the evacuation of the building while tracking the "potential threat" from the plane, without providing further details.
The news made headlines across the United States, as memories of the September 11, 2001 attacks with passenger planes remain vivid. However, the police quickly released a second statement indicating that the evacuation order was made "out of an abundance of caution," assuring that "there is no threat" to the building. The statement added that "the plane no longer poses a threat to the Capitol complex, and the Capitol Police are now preparing the buildings for reentry."
At the time the evacuation order was issued, neither the House nor the Senate was in session, which caused panic. While there was no immediate explanation for the incident, unverified reports suggested that a military celebration at a nearby stadium involving a parachute drop from a plane may have triggered the alarm.
Garrett Haake, a Capitol correspondent for NBC, tweeted that he "just saw some people parachuting above or near the U.S. Capitol amidst an evacuation order." Haake added, "It seems they may not have notified Capitol Police that they would be in their airspace. A police officer here told me she saw a small plane circling before parachutists jumped from it." The Washington Nationals Park, where the celebration took place, is about two and a half kilometers away from the Capitol building.
Later, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi criticized the "apparent negligence" of the Federal Aviation Administration after the misunderstanding regarding the parachute landing that caused a "needless panic."
