Coast Guard

Coast Guard

A Coast Guard training exercise in the Potomac River near the Pentagon sparked confusion amid Friday's commemorations of the Sept. 11 anniversary. FBI agents scrambled to the scene and the nearest airport briefly grounded flights. The Coast Guard said it was reviewing how the exercise led to media reports "based on overheard radio calls made over a training frequency."

Coast Guard Chief Keith Moore said no shots were fired as part of the exercise. Erroneous live cable news reports on CNN and Fox had said that the Coast Guard was firing shots on the river. CNN reported the Coast Guard had fired 10 rounds at a suspicious boat, and showed vessels circling in the water – near the bridge President Barack Obama's motorcade crossed on the way to a memorial at the Pentagon Friday morning. The Associated Press reported that an exercise was under way in the river and did not report that shots were fired.

Departures from Reagan National Airport were halted as a precaution at 10:08 a.m., then resumed at 10:30 a.m., Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere said. The airport borders the Potomac. A law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said federal agents scrambled to the river scene after the initial reports, because the local FBI office had not been told ahead of time about the Coast Guard exercise. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to discuss the incident.