Joint Base Andrews (JBA) went on lockdown Sunday night after a vehicle with two intruders attempted to pass a security checkpoint around the same time Vice President Kamala Harris was leaving the base.

The two individuals had arrived at the Main Gate of the Prince George’s County, Maryland base at approximately 9 p.m. According to an official statement from JBA, the 316th Security Forces Group was able to stop the vehicle and apprehend one of the intruders.

“We can confirm that the individual who was apprehended had a weapon, but no shots have been fired,” the statement read. The official for JBA did not confirm whether the second individual was armed while the lockdown was underway and they conducted a sweep of the entire installation.

During the on-site search, the Virginia Gate was open and officials encouraged travel to be limited to only what was necessary. As of JBA’s most recent update, the second individual remained at large.

“A full sweep of the base has been conducted and our Defenders, along with our local partners, found evidence that the base intruder departed the installation,” the update explained.

At no point during the incident was there an active shooter situation at the base which is known for being a primary hub for the president and vice president. According to NPR’s White House correspondent Scott Detrow, Harris had recently departed JBA on Marine 2 on her way back to Washington D.C.

I have no information other than this, but I am told JBA is on lockdown right now due to reports of an active shooter. Another reporter and I are in a shuttle van that is being held due to situation.

The VP had already left base on Marine 2.

— Scott Detrow (@scottdetrow) March 7, 2022

Harris had been traveling from Selma, AL where she attended an event to commemorate the 57th anniversary of Bloody Sunday. In addition to her husband, Doug Emhoff, she was accompanied by four members of the president’s cabinet; Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Housing Secretary Marcia Fudge, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan.

Told by a WH official that the four cabinet members who traveled back to JBA with Harris tonight – Buttigieg, Cardona, Fudge and Regan – are all safely off base.

— Scott Detrow (@scottdetrow) March 7, 2022

White House press that had traveled with President Joe Biden to his Wilmington, DE residence for the weekend had also been at JBA during the lockdown. They remained behind as government officials were cleared of the installation, but were later escorted off site.

Update: We (White House press who spent the weekend in Wilmington) have made it safely off base, courtesy of a police escort that got us through the line. We’re headed back to the White House now

— Nolan D. McCaskill (@NolanDMcCaskill) March 7, 2022

This is not the first time in which JBA has experienced security concerns. On June 30, 2016, it was reported that a scheduled active shooter drill had been misconstrued as an actual active shooter event when two personnel were observed walking on base carrying rifles.

An observer in the medical center had seen the armed men and reported there was a shooter on base sending the installation into a lockdown.

At the time, even though they were aware of the planned exercise, there was still concern it was a real event, and updates were provided through social media. “The base was scheduled to conduct an active shooter exercise, however, reports of a real-world active shooter situation were reported…First responders are currently on scene to secure the location.”

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Kevin Haggerty

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Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.

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