ARLINGTON, Va. — The Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, is locked down due to a potential hazmat issue.
Arlington Fire & EMS posted to X.com that the fire department teams, including a Hazardous Materials Team, are on site and are working in support of the Pentagon Force Protection Agency’s Hazmat Team.
ACFD units, including our Hazardous Materials Team, are currently operating at the Pentagon in support of PFPA’s Hazmat Team during a hazardous materials incident. pic.twitter.com/7qzOzbwh8W
— Arlington Fire & EMS (@ArlingtonVaFD) June 11, 2026
CNN reported that several floors and corridors were locked down while others were being evacuated.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said on Facebook that systems within the building “have detected an air quality issue necessitating precautionary measures until we determine its significance.”
Officials have not given specifics about the incident, and there has been no initial mention of an investigation, WUSA reported.
The Pentagon, which is the “nerve center” of the nation’s military, is made of five concentric rings with 10 intersecting corridors. Rings A and E allow people to walk around the entire building, while others may not, and some rings are only accessible from the basement.
The Pentagon’s Historical Office said, "The Pentagon is three in one: It is a building, an institution, and a symbol."
It has 6,500,000 square feet of office space and 17 1/2 miles of corridors, according to the Department of Defense, and has about 27,000 military and civilian employees as of 2025.
Check back for more on this developing story.
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