By Jill McLaughlin
The U.S. Coast Guard in Northern California opened fire on a U-Haul on Thursday night that was allegedly trying to ram through the entrance of a Coast Guard base, according to federal officials.
At about 10 p.m. on Oct. 23, Coast Guard personnel standing watch at the base in Alameda, about 15 miles east of San Francisco, saw a rental truck driving erratically and attempting to back into the facility.
Coast Guard personnel issued several commands for the truck to stop, but the driver allegedly ignored them.
The driver put the truck in reverse, then accelerated backward, directly toward personnel, officials reported.
“When the vehicle’s actions posed a direct threat to the safety of Coast Guard and security personnel, law enforcement officers discharged several rounds of live fire,” the Coast Guard stated in a post on X on Friday morning.
A video of the incident, released by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), showed multiple personnel attempting to stop the U-Haul at the gates, yelling several commands at the driver. They opened fire after the truck accelerated toward them.
The U-Haul truck driver was injured in the incident but is expected to survive, according to the DHS. The truck driver was struck in the stomach by gunfire and is also being held for a mental health evaluation.
A civilian standing near the incident was also shot and sustained a non-life-threatening injury, according to DHS.
No Coast Guard personnel were injured.
The FBI is leading the investigation into the incident, and DHS is cooperating with local law enforcement.
The incident occurred a few hours after President Donald Trump called off a planned federal law enforcement surge in San Francisco. The president announced he was withdrawing his plans after speaking with Mayor Daniel Lurie, who asked the president to give him a chance to reduce crime in the city.
