Canada’s parliament on lockdown after man barricades himself inside, authorities urge public to ‘hide’
A lockdown at the Canadian Parliament continued for hours Saturday night, after a man barricaded himself inside and prompted authorities to urge the public to “hide.”
Ottawa Police and Parliamentary Protective Services responded to Parliament Hill’s East Block on Wellington Street – where senators and their staff operate – just before 3 p.m. and later evacuated the area, Ottawa Police said in a X post.
The Parliamentary Protective Services issued an alert at 2:45 p.m. urging people inside to “seek shelter in the nearest room, close and lock all doors and hide,” according to CTV News. Residents were also warned to avoid the area and places under lockdown.
Parliament Hill was still operating under a shelter-in-place order, with a heavily armed police presence cordoning the area, as of Saturday evening.
Police offered few details about what was happening inside – but said a man “gained unauthorized access” to Parliament Hill’s East Block and that the circumstances are considered “suspicious.”
“We are currently in contact with the individual and our priority is to resolve this situation peacefully,” Insp. Mark Bouwmeester told reporters Saturday night.
“At this time there are no known injuries and we believe that the man is the only person inside the building.”
He did not specify whether the man was believed to be armed or if he made any threats.
Authorities have since deployed specialized patrols in the area, including at least one canine unit. Two bomb disposal unit robots were also spotted in front of Centre Block.
“Stay Safe Ottawa,” Canadian Senator Patrick Brazeau said on X, along with a photo of the startling alert.
Parliament has been dissolved since March 23 due to an upcoming federal election in Canada.
Road closures remain in place on Wellington St. from Bank Street to Sussex Drive, police said.
