White House locked down over two incidents

by Mark Hensch - 03/07/15 11:20 AM ET

The Secret Service locked down the White House on Saturday over two potentially dangerous events.

{mosads}Agent Brian Leary said that a canine unit first detected a suspicious car just after 10 a.m. The dog noticed the vehicle at 16th St. and Constitution Ave. in Washington.

“K9 alerted on a vehicle at 16th and Constitution at approx. 10:10 this morning,” Leary said in an email to The Hill. “It is being investigated now.”

Leary said that a vendor’s cart near the White House also started smoking due to a possible fire. Heavy smoke started emanating from the cart’s location at Washington’s 15th and G Streets.

“One of the vendor carts at 15th and G apparently had a smoke or fire issue that is now contained,” Leary’s email said. “D.C. fire is now on scene.”

Leary said additionally that the vehicle was cleared at 11:48 a.m.

A press pool report sent out at 10:47 a.m. said the lockdown was in effect. It mentioned Twitter posts showing the possible fire.

“Lockdown continues, although it doesn’t appear as though there’s a high level of consternation among Secret Service walking outside,” wrote David McCumber of Hearst Newspapers in the report. “Just now Twitter photos are appearing of a fire at a nearby souvenir stand. Pooler is unable to confirm this as cause of the lockdown but seems likely.”

NBC Washington reported D.C. fire officials extinguished the smoking cart. One person was evaluated at the scene but not transported to a hospital.

The two incidents occurred right before President Obama and his family departed for Selma, Ala.

The president planned on visiting Selma for the 50th anniversary of the “Bloody Sunday” civil rights march there.

The march inspired passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965. The landmark legislation guaranteed the right to vote for African Americans.

Politico reported that the lockdown ended after 11 a.m. Obama and his family have since departed via motorcade to Andrews Air Force Base. The Obamas will fly to Selma from there.

This story was updated at 12:20 a.m.