United States President Donald Trump was abruptly evacuated from the White House briefing room on Monday after shots were fired outside the building, Reuters reported. The president returned to the briefing room minutes later and told reporters that someone had been shot by the Secret Service outside the White House grounds.
“It was a shooting outside of the White House,” Trump said. “It seems to be very well under control...But there was an actual shooting, and somebody has been taken to the hospital. I don’t know the condition of the person.”
He also praised the work of Secret Service personnel in keeping him safe, according to AFP. “They’re fantastic people,” Trump said. “They’re the best of the best. They’re highly trained. A lot of terrific looking people ready to go if something was necessary.”
Asked if he was rattled by the incident, the Republican president said: “I don’t know, do I seem rattled?”
The doors to the White House briefing room were locked shortly before Trump was escorted out. He was taken to the Oval Office, which is in the West Wing of the White House.
The Secret Service tweeted that an officer was involved in the shooting at 17th Street Northwest and Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest. This is one block from the White House.
“The investigation into a USSS [United States Secret Service] officer involved shooting is ongoing,” it added. “A male subject and a USSS officer were both transported to a local hospital. At no time during this incident was the White House complex breached or were any protectees in danger.”
The president was speaking about the stock market when a Secret Service agent came into the room and asked him to leave the area.
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