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US Capitol nerve agent scare a false alarm
WASHINGTON - Washington authorities said a nerve agent scare, which forced the evacuation of a Senate office building Wednesday night, was a “false alarm” after white powder found in the building tested negative.
Scores of senators and Senate staffers were rushed from their offices after a sensor in the building’s attic set off an alarm indicating the suspected presence of a dangerous nerve agent in the building, said Capitol Police sergeant Kimberly Schneider.
“All the test results are actually negative, so that’s very good news,” Schneider told reporters about three hours after the Russell Senate Office Building was evacuated.
“We have a good outcome tonight, so we are all very happy about this,” she said.
The alarm, which was sounded around 6:30 pm (2330 GMT), saw scores of emergency vehicles and hazardous materials teams descend on the building. Police within the congressional complex evacuated senators’ offices and ushered workers into a holding area located within a garage. The building is linked by an underground tunnel to the Capitol, which houses the US Congress.
Police said workers, including some senators, had been directed to the garage for their own safety as further tests were being conducted.
“There was an alarm to immediately leave the building,” Eileen McMenamin, a spokeswoman for Senator John McCain, told CNN television from the garage area.
“There are guys down here testing the air,” she said. “They just used the words “nerve agent’.”
Schneider said no one reported any symptoms that would be consistent with a chemical or biological attack, but could not say what the white powder was that set off the sensors.
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