The White House on Tuesday was briefly put on lockdown, as fighter jets were scrambled in Washington following an airspace violation, law enforcement officials told NBC News.
The lockdown was lifted less than 30 minutes after it was first claimed by White House reporters.
“The White House was locked down this morning due to a potential violation of the restricted airspace in the National Capital Region,” a Secret Service spokesman told CNBC in a statement. “The lockdown has been lifted at this time.”
A small aircraft violated airspace rules in a restricted area
The North American Aerospace Defense Command said the plane was not considered hostile.
NBC also reported that a security alert was raised at the Capitol building.
The U.S. Capitol Police did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for comment. The White House referred CNBC to the Secret Service.
The White House was on lockdown after the briefing room was closed off sparking panic among some of the press in Washington DC. All Capitol buildings were on lockdown, according to local reports.
The White House was currently on lockdown with videos circulating on social media of the press “sheltered in place inside briefing room”. According to reports, police in Washington DC said there is an “unauthorized aircraft” in the vicinity. All Capitol buildings are thought to be on lockdown.
One journalist said that “agents have everything locked down” before claiming “one tells me the situation is ‘shelter-in-place.’”
Reports later emerged that Capitol Hill had been evacuated amid the threat.
Fighter jets are believed to have been scrambled amid reports of an airspace violation in Washington DC.
The lockdown in the White House has now been lifted indicating no hostile threat at this time.
The evacuations at the Capitol were issued as a precaution and lasted around half-an-hour.
A statement from the Secret Service, read: “The White House was locked down this morning due to a potential violation of the restricted airspace in the National Capital Region.
“The lockdown has been lifted at this time.”
Fox News reported the lockdown was triggered after an aircraft moving east violated restricted airspace.
Follow the latest news on Google News
