The US Capitol is being evacuated and the White House is on lockdown amid reports that fighter jets have been scrambled to respond to an airspace violation in Washington, local media reports said on Tuesday.
A video uploaded by Cheddar's J.D. Durkin shows a Secret Service officer standing guard outside of the press room.
White House totally on lockdown. All press being sheltered in place inside briefing room. Similar reported response at the a U.S. Capitol + congressional office buildings pic.twitter.com/9GlXpH1qLq
— j.d. durkin (@jiveDurkey) November 26, 2019
Roads around the White House have been closed to traffic, a Sputnik correspondent said.
According to MSNBC, fighter jets have been scrambled in Washington after an aircraft failed to respond to air traffic controllers.
The lockdown began shortly after 9 am and was lifted some 20 minutes later, NBC News reported.
According to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the plane which prompted the lockdown is not considered hostile.
Senior interagency officials are monitoring the situation on a national event conference call. Our jet fighters are on site and responding. Plane is not considered hostile at this time.
— North American Aerospace Defense Command (@NORADCommand) November 26, 2019
