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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A "blip" on a radar screen, rather than a plane, was responsible for sending tourists and staff fleeing the White House in fear of another September 11-style attack on the U.S. capital.
Gun-toting security guards hustled senior White House staff and school tours away from the home and offices of President George W. Bush (news - web sites), who was in Britain at the time. They were allowed to return after the alarm was called off.
It later turned out to be a false alarm.
"There was never a plane. It was a blip on one radar," said the Federal Aviation Administration (news - web sites)'s spokeswoman Rebecca Trexler.
White House employees left the buildings but the Secret Service (news - web sites) said there was not an official evacuation order.
As the incident unfolded on Thursday, a guard brandishing a shotgun was on the sidewalk in front, cautioning people to stay away from the White House.
Vice President **** Cheney (news - web sites), who has spent time in secret locations after the September 11 attacks, was whisked away in a motorcade.
The evacuation came on the same day that two blasts in Istanbul killed at least 25 people, wrecking the British consulate and the headquarters of a bank.
Gun-toting security guards hustled senior White House staff and school tours away from the home and offices of President George W. Bush (news - web sites), who was in Britain at the time. They were allowed to return after the alarm was called off.
It later turned out to be a false alarm.
"There was never a plane. It was a blip on one radar," said the Federal Aviation Administration (news - web sites)'s spokeswoman Rebecca Trexler.
White House employees left the buildings but the Secret Service (news - web sites) said there was not an official evacuation order.
As the incident unfolded on Thursday, a guard brandishing a shotgun was on the sidewalk in front, cautioning people to stay away from the White House.
Vice President **** Cheney (news - web sites), who has spent time in secret locations after the September 11 attacks, was whisked away in a motorcade.
The evacuation came on the same day that two blasts in Istanbul killed at least 25 people, wrecking the British consulate and the headquarters of a bank.
Whose running the show around here? A bunch of *******s?!
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