Secret Service agents on Friday night, have rushed US President Donald Trump to a White House bunker after the hundreds of protesters gathered outside the executive mansion, with some of them resorting to stone pelting.
As per the information acquired from a senior administration official who asked for his anonymity told that Trump was in the bunker for a “very short period” out of an abundance of caution. Trump was back in his residence within an hour, the official said.
The underground location was the same bunker that was used for former Vice President Dick Cheney during September 11, 2001, attacks. The bunker has been designed for use in emergencies like terrorist attacks.
"The White House does not comment on security protocols and decisions," said White House spokesman Judd Deere. The Secret Service said it does not discuss the means and methods of its protective operations. However, the President's move to the bunker was first reported by The New York times.
It was not immediately clear if first lady Melania Trump and the couple's 14-year-old-son, Barron, joined the President in the bunker. Secret Service protocol would have called for all those under the agency’s protection to be in the underground shelter.
According to an eminent media house, President Trump revealed to his advisers that he worries about his safety.
The president and his family have been shaken by the size and venom of the crowds, according to a Republican who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
On Monday, protesters started fires near the White House using road signs and plastic barriers. Some pulled an American flag from a nearby building and threw it into the blaze. Others added branches pulled from trees. A cinder block structure, on the north side of the park, that had bathrooms and a maintenance office, was engulfed in flames, another AP report said.