Reports: White House Press Room Briefly Evacuated For Bomb Threat

The White House press briefing room was briefly evacuated Tuesday following a bomb threat, according to multiple reports. The half-hour evacuation starting at 2:10 p.m. eastern time didn't affect other sections of the White House, although tourist movements were restricted on the building's North Lawn, reports said. Earlier in the day, parts of the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill were evacuated briefly on a call concerning a suspect package in the building. Separately, another "suspicious package" at the nearby Russell Senate Office Building, turned out to be an unattended cooler, according to reports. CNN said it's unclear whether the threats were related. http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/09/politics/hearing-evacuated-bomb-threat-tsa/ Secret Service agents interrupted Tuesday's televised briefing as press secretary Josh Earnest was answering a question about a recent online security breach of the Office of Property Management, allegedly at the hands of Chinese hackers, according to the Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/06/09/white-house-briefing-room-evacuated-by-secret-service-during-televised-briefing/ The White House briefing room was evacuated during a press conference at about 2:10 p.m. eastern time according to the Post, which said reporters were allowed back in at 2:40 p.m. Secret Service agents searched the room with bomb-sniffing dogs and found nothing amiss. The Post said the White House has been put on lockdown, with reporters and staff unable to enter or leave the building, on previous occasions due to bomb threats or other security breaches. The Post said it didn't know when the last time a daily briefing was interrupted for an evacuation.