NBC News correspondent Jo Ling Kent was hit by what appears to be a tear gas canister while covering the Black Lives Matter protest in Seattle following the murder of George Floyd.
The incident happened at Capitol Hill around 9 p.m. on Monday, a few hours after the 6 p.m. curfew went into effect, according to The Independent.
Speaking to the network, the 31-year-old journalist said the protest started out peacefully, but turned into chaos after 9 p.m. when the police began moving forward.
“The situation began disintegrating after 9 p.m., three hours after the city-wide curfew went into effect,” Kent told Today. “Tensions suddenly boiled over at the police barricades with protestors yelling and officers moving forward with tear gas.”
As the police continued to advance, Kent and her crew, along with a huge crowd, made their way onto a baseball field in Capitol Hill.
As she was reporting the events happening in the neighborhood, a random tear gas canister bounced near her left arm. Kent was able to run at a safe distance before smoke started to appear.
Kent took to Twitter to update that she was safe following the close-call.
Hey everyone. Thankfully, our whole team is ok and safe. I’m totally fine – my jacket sleeve got singed and that’s it.
So sorry for the curse words.. and thank you for the sweet texts, calls and tweets ❤️ https://t.co/WQdtxU4FIz
— Jo Ling Kent (@jolingkent) June 2, 2020
Born to an American father and Chinese mother, Kent started her career as a web reporter for ABC News when she covered the Beijing Olympics 2008, Taiwan elections, and the Sichuan earthquake in 2008, according to her Everipedia page.
Feature Image (right) via @jolingkent (left) Screenshot via MSNBC
