A driver died after crashing his vehicle into an outer gate of the White House late Saturday, authorities said.
The adult male driver, who was not named, “collided with an outer perimeter gate on the White House complex” at about 10:30 p.m. as his vehicle was “traveling at a high rate of speed,” the U.S. Secret Service posted Sunday.
“Security protocols were implemented as officers cleared the vehicle and attempted to render aid to the driver who was discovered deceased. There was no threat to the White House,” the Secret Service statement revealed.
The Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) said its officers arrived at the intersection of 15th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW in response to the crash report.
“The vehicle crashed into a security barrier around the White House complex. At this time, the incident is being investigated only as a traffic crash by MPD’s Major Crash Investigations Unit,” the MPD added.
The driver appeared to be the lone victim of the crash.
There were “[l]imited traffic closures” still enforced in the area after midnight Sunday, Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi posted alongside the Secret Service statement. There was no public safety threat, although Secret Service investigations would continue while the MPD investigated the cause of the crash, Guglielmi added. (RELATED: Driver Crashes Into White House Gate, Secret Service Says)
A similar but non-fatal Jan. 8 crash into an exterior White House gate reportedly led to the arrest of the driver involved.
Last May, 19-year-old Missourian Sai Varshith Kandula crashed his U-Haul vehicle into Lafayette Square near the White House, allegedly pulled out a Nazi flag, and threatened to harm President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris and take over the government, CBS News reported, citing court documents. Kandula allegedly claimed Nazis had “a great history” and said he admired the Nazis’ “authoritarian nature, Eugenics, and their one world order,” NBC News reported, also citing court documents.