Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of United States House of Representatives, blamed the Federal Aviation Administration for a brief security breach on Wednesday. The Capitol Police ordered an evacuation after a “probable threat” was detected.

Authorities said on Wednesday evening that they were “tracking an aircraft that poses a probable threat”, which later turned out to be a harmless parachute stunt for a sports event. It is unclear if the plane was authorised to fly in the heavily guarded airspace.

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The mini-crisis at the heart of the United States’ legislative powerhouse prompted reactions from lawmakers. House Speaker Pelosi said in a statement that the “apparent failure to notify Capitol Police of the pre-planned flyover Nationals Stadium is outrageous and inexcusable.”

Pelosi also connected the incident to the Capitol riots, which happened on January 6, 2021. The lawmaker’s statement added, “The unnecessary panic caused by this apparent negligence was particularly harmful to members, staff and institutional workers who are still grappling with the trauma of the attack on their workplace on January 6th.”

What exactly happened at the Capitol?

After a “probable threat” was detected by the United States Capitol Police, an evacuation notice was issued to all members of Congress and the staffers inside the complex.

In addition to the Capitol building, areas like the Capitol visitor center, Hart, Dirksen, Russell, Cannon, Longworth, Rayburn buildings were given evacuation orders. Similar guidelines were issued for three congressional libraries and botanic gardens.

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The alert was issued around 6:30 PM, ensuing apparent panic in the legislative complex.

The plane landed back at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland around 6:50 PM after the parachutists descended into the middle of the field at Nationals Park. The stadium, home of the Washington Nationals baseball team, is a little more than a mile away from the United States Capitol.