A military plane carrying army skydivers caused a false alarm, created chaos, and forced the police to evacuate the US Capitol

*Paromita Das

According to local media reports, a plane carrying US military skydivers triggered a false alarm at the US Capitol, prompting an evacuation of the complex.

On Wednesday evening, the US Capitol Police misidentified a military aircraft as a “probable threat.” The plane was actually carrying the US Army’s Golden Knights demonstration team, who were parachuting into a nearby Washington Nationals game.

The US Capitol Police were apparently not notified.

According to CNN, the email subject line of a Capitol Police alert issued shortly after 6.30 p.m. read, “Evacuate Now: Aircraft Intrusion.”
“The USCP is tracking an aircraft that may pose a threat to the Capitol Complex,” the email began, before listing instructions for people at various locations throughout the complex.

The Capitol Police arrived about 20 minutes later and discovered that there was no threat at all.

“This evening, the Capitol was evacuated due to an abundance of caution. There is no danger at the Capitol “the department issued a tweet.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi chastised the FAA for the apparent blunder, accusing them of “causing unnecessary panic.”

“The apparent failure of the Federal Aviation Administration to notify Capitol Police of the pre-planned flyover Nationals Stadium is outrageous and inexcusable,” Pelosi said in a statement.
“The unnecessary panic caused by this apparent negligence was especially harmful for Members, staff, and institutional workers who were still dealing with the trauma of the January 6th attack on their workplace,” the top House Democrat added.

The House Speaker went on to say that Congress would hold FAA officials “accountable” for the communication breakdown.

The false alarm shocked several lawmakers and visitors present at the complex, as the trauma of Capitol riots and the 9/11 attacks was still fresh in everyone’s minds.

Also read: Capitol attack trial: Son testifies against father in emotional testimony

“We just went through a very stressful 15 minutes, but we are thankful that everyone is safe,” said Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez on Twitter.
CNN’s congressional correspondent Ryan Nobles said he was among those evacuated and that “it was pretty frantic for a good 15 minutes.”

“The alarms were loud and intense, and Capitol Police were not wasting time getting people out,” he wrote on Twitter.