This story is breaking and will be updated:
WASHINGTON – Police say one officer was killed and another remains hospitalized after a man drove a car into a security barrier near the U.S. Capitol building on Friday.
“It is with a very, very heavy heart that I announce one of our officers has succumbed to his injuries,” acting U.S Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman told reporters in a news briefing
Pittman said officers shot the driver after he exited the vehicle wielding a knife and “started to lunge aggressively toward US Capitol police officers.” The driver was taken to the hospital where he died.
D.C. Police Chief Robert J. Contee III said there does not appear to be an ongoing threat related to the incident and that “it does not appear to be terrorism-related.”
The gated entrance is one of several that allow access to the U.S. Capitol and is primarily used by senators and staff.
D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department reported that they received a 911 call at 1:05 p.m. about a “possible shooting” near the Capitol.
According to an email obtained by USA TODAY from a Hill staffer sent from the United States Capitol Police at 1:20 pm: “The external security threat located at all of the U.S. Capitol Campus Buildings continues” and asks those outside to “seek cover.”
Text message alerts asked those inside to stay away from windows.
According to footage from Jake Sherman, a Capitol Hill reporter for Punchbowl News, a helicopter landed on the East side of the Capitol building.
Access to the Capitol premises has been heavily guarded since a pro-Trump mob stormed the building on Jan. 6 in a riot that led to five deaths.
Two layers of 8-foot fences, topped with barbed wire, were erected in the aftermath – one that surrounded the Capitol and another that surrounded the overall campus and blocks of federal buildings, including the Supreme Court and Library of Congress.
The outer fence was taken down late last month, which allowed pedestrians and vehicles closer access to the Capitol, including the area where this incident took place.
The incident happened while both chambers of Congress are out of session and most lawmakers are back in their home districts.
Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C. who was back in South Carolina but had some of his staff in his Capitol Hill office said he was “thankful” the incident didn’t escalate.
“To think just about 10 days ago, we were removing the fences that created the border around the Capitol,” he told FOX News Friday. “I’m sure there’s going to be a new conversation about what that looks like going forward.”
A series of congressional leaders paid tribute to the Capitol Police after the incident.
“Praying for the United States Capitol Police officers who were attacked at the Capitol. We are still learning what’s taken place,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in a tweet. “Grateful to all the USCP and first responders who are on the scene,” McConnell said.”
“Praying for the law enforcement + first responders concerning the incident at the Capitol,” Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, tweeted.
Contributing: Kevin Johnson, Christal Hayes, David Jackson
