PORTLAND, Ore. — Incivility and unrest continued in Portland, Ore., on Saturday night into Sunday morning, with police declaring a riot just after midnight near the Penumbra Kelly Building, which houses public safety offices, according to reports.
Rioters were seen throwing rocks, bottles and other objects at police officers, KGW-TV reported.
“The Incident Commander has declared this a RIOT. Immediately disperse to the WEST,” Portland police wrote on Twitter.
Police warned rioters that failure to leave the area would subject them to “citation, arrest, and/or crowd control agents, including but not limited to tear gas and/or impact weapons.”
Officers deployed in the Southeast Portland area, which is about six miles from downtown. They were seen trying to block crowds at 47th and 53rd avenues, KGW reported.
There was no immediate information about arrests, injuries or property damage, Fox reported.
An earlier march to the building was turned back by police, The Associated Press reported.
The government building is located at the corner of 47th Avenue and Burnside Street in Southeast Portland. It houses offices for the Portland Police Bureau and the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office.
Crowds arrived near the Kelly building around 11 p.m. local time, KOIN-TV reported.
The city has seen nightly unrest for nearly three months, since the May 25 custodial death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
On Saturday, President Trump urged leaders in Oregon to request federal assistance to help take care of the violence.
“Would bring in National Guard, end problem immediately,” Trump wrote. “ASK!”
