The event was later cancelled after Trump confirmed a shooter had been on site
The president’s first time attendance as a sitting president at the White House Correspondent’s Dinner was nothing short of chaotic as mere minutes into the proceedings, he was evacuated from the annual dinner when gun:shots rang out through the jam packed venue.
The POTUS appeared to have been in high spirits when he chatted away to Weijia Jiang CBS News’ senior White House correspondent following her opening remarks.
Still, their conversation was soon interrupted by the sound of multiple gunshots in rapid succession, which prompted secret service agents to leap into action and order Trump and First Lady Melania to duck down for cover, before being swiftly evacuated from the scene.
Apart from Trump, Cabinet officials were swiftly evacuated from the ballroom as authorities got to work to clear the building of any threats.
Neither the president nor the vice president were injured, according to The Associated Press.
A few moments after the incident, CNN reported that the shooter was dead, however conflicting reports from The Associated Press say a person is in custody after the shooting at the correspondents’ dinner.
So far, no further details have been revealed about the identity or motive of the person behind the attack, and the hundreds of attendees at the dinner are still trying to process their shock at the events that unfolded.
When information continues to come through slowly, an announcement was heard overhead that the planned programme of events would still go ahead this evening, following an upcoming announcement about the terrifying situation.
The news that things would ‘resume shortly’ was met with cheers from the crowd of attendees, however tensions and adrenaline continues to remain high in the wake of the shooting.
Recalling how the situation unfolded, one attendee described how gunshots rang out inside the Washington Hilton, and multiple attendees scrambled to hide underneath tables in the ballroom.
One woman broke down in tears and said it was the ‘scariest thing’. she’d ever experienced. Senator John Fetterman was seen assisting another woman as she got up from underneath a table.
Elsewhere, a Secret Service agent was seen carrying a military rifle, with multiple tables and chairs flipped over as they had rushed forwards to protect the President and senior officials.
In video footage of the event, the exact moment gunshots rang out can be clearly heard, although initially most people appeared to dismiss it as it was a muffled sound rather than a clear bang, bang, bang.
USA Today later reported live from the event that the shooting is said to have taken place upstairs away from the main event space, which could figure out why the sound was initially dismissed and muffled.
As the chaos from the disturbance continues to ripple throughout the room, White House Correspondents’ Association President Weijia Jiang took to the stage and announced that the planned program would resume. “I know everyone’s going to want as many details as possible,” Jang said, adding, “We will have more details to share also momentarily, for now please just be patient as we figure out just how much time it will be.”
It has yet to be confirmed whether President Trump will return to give his planned remarks, however it is understood he is keen to do so, pending security clearance from the secret service.
President Trump reacted to the ordeal on Truth Social as he praised the swift intervention of law enforcement. He wrote: “Quite an evening in D.C. Secret Service and Law Enforcement did a fantastic job. They acted quickly and bravely. The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we “LET THE SHOW GO ON” but, will entirely be guided by Law Enforcement. They will make a decision shortly. Regardless of that decision, the evening will be much different than planned, and we’ll just, plain, have to do it again. President DONALD J. TRUMP”
In spite of the optimism to continue, in a final update issued by an emotional Jang shortly before 21:45 ET, it was later confirmed that due to security protocol all attendees must leave the building, effectively cancelling the planned evening entirely.
President Trump was believed to have instructed the event to be rescheduled to take place within 30 days, with a press briefing due to follow at the White House, within 30 minutes time.