The Pentagon was partially evacuated on Friday morning due
to heavy smoke near a construction area in the main concourse
of the U.S. Department of Defense headquarters, officials said.
Investigators found heavy smoke but no fire in a mechanical
room on the fifth floor. There were no injuries, the department
said.
"It's all contained. It's under control, but they haven't
issued an all-clear yet," the spokeswoman said.
Pentagon police and Arlington County, Virginia, firefighters
were on scene investigating.
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The evacuation order for part of the Pentagon was still in
effect and the building entrance near the building's Metro transit
stop was closed.
The Pentagon is one of the world's largest office buildings,
so big that the U.S. capitol building could fit inside any one
of its five wedge-shaped sections. More than 20,000 people,
both military and civilian, work inside.
A renovation has been under way for years, with construction
currently focused on the main concourse, which houses shops,
banking and mail facilities.