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Device found on White House grounds but officials say it posed no threat Device found on White House grounds identified as drone; no threat posed
(about 2 hours later)
NEW DELHI — A “device” was found on the grounds of the White House early Monday, but officials said it did not pose a threat. A small drone flew onto the White House grounds early Monday, causing a lockdown at the compound until the two-foot-wide device was recovered and examined, the Secret Service said.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest, speaking to reporters in New Delhi, said the Secret Service recovered the device and were investigating. He gave no further details. The latest security breach at the executive mansion came as President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama were visiting India, but their two daughters remained behind in Washington.
The Associated Press and Reuters news agencies, citing unconfirmed reports, described the object as possibly a small drone. But there was no immediate word from authorities. The Secret Service statement identified the object as a “quad copter,” a commercially available drone with four propellers.
Secret Service officials did not immediately respond to questions about a possible drone. American officials, however, also did not dismiss speculation that it was some type of unmanned aerial device. “There was an immediate alert and lockdown of the complex until the device was examined and cleared,” the statement said. “An investigation is underway to determine the origin of this commercially available device, motive, and to identify suspects.” It gave no further details.
Earnest said the device did not pose a threat to the building or the first family. President Obama and first lady Michele Obama were in India, but were not accompanied by their daughters Sasha and Malia. Earlier, White House press secretary Josh Earnest, speaking to reporters in New Delhi, said the device did not pose a threat to the building or the first family.
It was not immediately clear whether the girls were at the White House when the device was discovered before dawn. They were under the care of their grandmother, who also lives at the White House. It said the drone was spotted about 3:08 a.m. flying at a low altitude onto the White House grounds, crashing on the southeastern side.
It was not immediately clear whether the Obama children, Malia and Sasha, were at the White House when the device was discovered before dawn. They were under the care of their grandmother, who also lives at the White House.
“There is a device that has been recovered by the Secret Service at the White House,” Earnest said when asked if a drone was found. “The early indications are that it does not pose any sort of ongoing threat to anybody at the White House.”“There is a device that has been recovered by the Secret Service at the White House,” Earnest said when asked if a drone was found. “The early indications are that it does not pose any sort of ongoing threat to anybody at the White House.”
Around 5 a.m., authorities could be seen searching the White House grounds with flashlights. Investigators continued the search after sunrise as a light snow fell. Around 5 a.m., authorities could be seen searching the White House grounds with flashlights. Investigators continued the search after sunrise as a light snow fell. The lockdown was later lifted.
The incident comes after a series of lapses in security at the White House and a shakeup in the leadership at the Secret Service. The incident follows a series of lapses in security at the White House and a shake-up in the leadership at the Secret Service.
In September, a knife-wielding man scaled the fence at the White House and ran through much of the mansion’s main floor. An armed private security contractor in Atlanta also boarded an elevator with Obama that same month.In September, a knife-wielding man scaled the fence at the White House and ran through much of the mansion’s main floor. An armed private security contractor in Atlanta also boarded an elevator with Obama that same month.
In a series of reports, the Post disclosed how the Secret Service failed to respond well after a gunman shot at the White House in 2011. That incident raised major concerns among lawmakers. In a series of reports, The Washington Post disclosed how the Secret Service failed to respond well after a gunman shot at the White House in 2011. That incident raised major concerns among lawmakers.
The Secret Service has been concerned about drones entering the White House airspace. In the past, the agency has had internal discussions about the specific risks of drones carrying explosives. Small drones previously have violated the highly restricted airspace near the White House and the Capitol.
Despite the post 9-11 efforts to secure the airspace around the White House, drones still present a problem because radar often does not spot their movement. A three-mile area around the White House, called the P56 zone, is a permanent no-fly zone. All pilots are warned to steer clear though standard “notices to airmen,” and are given emergency alerts if they come close to crossing the line. About 7:30 pm on July 3, a Secret Service patrol detained an individual who was flying a small quadcopter drone in President’s Park, about one block from the White House grounds, according to an incident report filed with the Federal Aviation Administration.
The risk to the White House from airborne threats is nothing new. The camera-equipped drone was flying about 100 feet in the air near the statue of Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, close to the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and 15th Street NW. The FAA report noted that the drone was confiscated by the Secret Service but did not identify the pilot or elaborate on whether charges were filed.
A pilot who stole a plane crashed onto the South Lawn of the White House in 1994, and after 9/11, and investigators’ belief that terrorists had intended crash a plane into the White House, the Service has kept even closer track of air travel around the compound. A three-mile area around the White House, called the P56 zone, is a permanent no-fly zone. All pilots are warned to steer clear though standard “notices to airmen,” and they are given emergency alerts if they come close to crossing the line.
Leonnig reported from Washington. Dana Hedgpeth and Brian Murphy in Washington contributed to this report. Drones have violated that airspace on at least three other occasions in the past six months.
On Aug. 29, the U.S. Capitol Police reported detaining an individual for flying a small drone on the Capitol grounds, according to an FAA incident report that gave no further details.
Ten days earlier, on Aug. 19, District police arrested an unidentified man after they found him stuck in a tree in Freedom Plaza, just east of the White House at the intersection of 14th Street NW and Pennsylvania Avenue. According to an FAA report, the man had climbed up the tree to fetch a small drone that he had been flying when it got caught in the branches.
And on July 7, another person was questioned by the U.S. Park Police for flying a small quadcopter drone in the vicinity of the Lincoln Memorial, according to an FAA incident report that gave no other details.
A boom in sales of small consumer drones in recent years has triggered hundreds of other incidents around the country in which the remotely controlled aircraft have buzzed dangerously close to passenger planes, rescue helicopters and sports stadiums, according to FAA data.
While the White House grounds are an especially sensitive area, drone operators have gotten into trouble elsewhere in the Washington region.
On Oct. 6, for example, Prince George’s County police arrested at least two people for flying a white drone over FedEx Field about one hour before the Washington Redskins kicked off against the Seattle Seahawks during a nationally televised Monday Night Football matchup, according to an FAA incident report. The drone, which was equipped with red and blue lights, was spotted flying about 150 feet over the stadium, according to the report, which did not identify the suspects or give further details.
A recent incident involving a drone crashing in front of German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a campaign event reinforced the possible dangers posed.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has been investigating the Service’s recent security lapses and said Monday in a phone interview that the incident is “deeply concerning”.
“These kinds of threats are not going away. But I do believe they are on top of it,” he said of the Service.
He stressed that the problems with drones is they are easily accessible.
“Anybody can go down to RadioShack and buy one of these. It could be a guy down by the river in his van or it could be a nefarious terrorist,” Chaffetz said. “You just don’t know.”
Zezima reported from New Delhi. Dana Hedgpeth and Brian Murphy in Washington contributed to this report.