The Jan. 6 panel of the Home of Representatives postpones listening to as a consequence of Hurricane Ian

U.S. Representative Bennie Thompson, chairman of the House Committee investigating the Capitol Riot, speaks during a hearing of the House Representatives Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol at the Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington , D.C., June 13, 2022.

Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images

The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot in the Capitol is postponing its next public hearing because of a severe hurricane, the panel’s chairmen said Tuesday.

The hearing, which was scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET Wednesday, will now be held at a later time to be announced, Committee Chair Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and Vice Chair Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., said in a joint statement.

“With Hurricane Ian impacting parts of Florida, we have decided to postpone tomorrow’s hearing,” Thompson and Cheney said.

“We pray for the safety of all who find themselves in the path of the storm. The Special Committee investigation is ongoing and we will announce a date for the postponed trial soon,” they said.

The delay came after Hurricane Ian, a Category 3 storm expected to batter Florida with high winds and heavy rain, made landfall in Cuba.

Forecasters are predicting Ian could strengthen into a Category 4 hurricane by Tuesday night.

The panel’s next hearing will be its ninth and first since late July.

The committee is investigating the facts and circumstances surrounding the January 6, 2021 riots, when a violent mob of supporters of then-President Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol. The rebellion forced lawmakers to leave their chambers and temporarily prevented them from confirming President Joe Biden’s victory over Trump in the 2020 election.

At the now-postponed hearing, the panel was scheduled to show clips of Roger Stone, a longtime political operative and Trump confidant, speaking out about contesting the 2020 election results, NBC News reported.

The postponement was announced less than two months before the midterm elections, when Republicans hope to regain control of the House and Senate.

Cheney, who lost her GOP feature race to a Trump-backed challenger last month, has vowed to do whatever it takes to keep Trump out of the White House. But Trump remains a key figure in the Republican Party, as some polls place him as the clear favorite to win the party’s presidential nomination in 2024.

The committee also faces a year-end deadline to submit a final report to the President and Congress that includes its findings and recommendations.