US Capitol Temporarily Cordoned Off
Two days before the swearing-in ceremony for US President-elect Joe Biden, the seat of Congress in Washington was temporarily cordoned off because of a nearby fire.
There was no danger to the public, the small fire had been extinguished, the Secret Service announced today on Twitter.
According to police, there was no fire on the Capitol grounds itself. On Twitter and in the media it was said that the accommodation of a homeless woman under a motorway bridge should have burned. It is not known whether there were injuries.
At the beginning of January supporters of the outgoing President Donald Trump stormed the building. Before his successor was sworn in, the security precautions in the US capital were massively strengthened.
Huge cloud of smoke in Washington DC Freeway at 395- 695 Freeway right. G the Capitol. pic.twitter.com/EQnv0OMRxE
— Saqib Ul Islam (@SaqibIslam) January 18, 2021
The Secret Service has since said the evacuation and lockdown were initiated “out of an abundance of caution” and that the “small fire” poses “no threat to the public.”
Public safety and law enforcement responded to a small fire in the area of 1st and F streets SE, Washington, D.C. that has been extinguished. Out of an abundance of caution the U.S. Capitol complex was temporarily shutdown. There is no threat to the public. pic.twitter.com/kQfAI4NxNK
— U.S. Secret Service (@SecretService) January 18, 2021
The city is on high alert after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by a mob of President Trump’s supporters. Over 20,000 National Guard troops from across the nation have been mobilized to bolster security around Inauguration Day.
