Emergency Crews Dispatched to White House Following Fake 911 Call

Mar. 15, 2025

White House.Photo: © Caroline Purser/Getty ImagesEmergency crews were dispatched to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — the address of the White House — following a “swatting” incident on Monday. Various outlets including CNN report that emergency personnel responded to the White House following a 911 call in which a caller falsely claimed someone was trapped in the building, and that there was a fire.PresidentJoe Bidenwas at Camp David at the time of the call, according to White House press pool reports.The White House did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for further details.CNNreports that the call “was traced to a fake number” and came in at 7:03 a.m. ET. “Multiple DC Fire and EMS units were sent to the White House,” the outlet added. The situation was deemed an “all clear” less than ten minutes after the call came in, after emergency crews assessed the situation.The call appears to be the result of a so-called “swatting” hoax, in which someone makes a false report of an emergency with the purpose of luring law enforcement to the home of a high-profile person.Late last month, controversial Georgia Republican Rep.Marjorie Taylor Greenewas the target of a similar hoax, though the police department determined there was no actual emergency before dispatching anyone to her residence.“I was just swatted. This is like the 8th time. On Christmas with my family here. My local police are the GREATEST and shouldn’t have to deal with this,” Greene wrotein a post on Xpublished on Christmas day.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.Earlier this month, Judge Tanya Chutkan — the federal judge overseeing the election subversion case against former PresidentDonald Trump— was the victim of a similar swatting hoax at her Washington, D.C. home,CNNreported.

White House.Photo: © Caroline Purser/Getty Images

Emergency crews were dispatched to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — the address of the White House — following a “swatting” incident on Monday. Various outlets including CNN report that emergency personnel responded to the White House following a 911 call in which a caller falsely claimed someone was trapped in the building, and that there was a fire.PresidentJoe Bidenwas at Camp David at the time of the call, according to White House press pool reports.The White House did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for further details.CNNreports that the call “was traced to a fake number” and came in at 7:03 a.m. ET. “Multiple DC Fire and EMS units were sent to the White House,” the outlet added. The situation was deemed an “all clear” less than ten minutes after the call came in, after emergency crews assessed the situation.The call appears to be the result of a so-called “swatting” hoax, in which someone makes a false report of an emergency with the purpose of luring law enforcement to the home of a high-profile person.Late last month, controversial Georgia Republican Rep.Marjorie Taylor Greenewas the target of a similar hoax, though the police department determined there was no actual emergency before dispatching anyone to her residence.“I was just swatted. This is like the 8th time. On Christmas with my family here. My local police are the GREATEST and shouldn’t have to deal with this,” Greene wrotein a post on Xpublished on Christmas day.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.Earlier this month, Judge Tanya Chutkan — the federal judge overseeing the election subversion case against former PresidentDonald Trump— was the victim of a similar swatting hoax at her Washington, D.C. home,CNNreported.

Emergency crews were dispatched to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — the address of the White House — following a “swatting” incident on Monday. Various outlets including CNN report that emergency personnel responded to the White House following a 911 call in which a caller falsely claimed someone was trapped in the building, and that there was a fire.

PresidentJoe Bidenwas at Camp David at the time of the call, according to White House press pool reports.

The White House did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for further details.

CNNreports that the call “was traced to a fake number” and came in at 7:03 a.m. ET. “Multiple DC Fire and EMS units were sent to the White House,” the outlet added. The situation was deemed an “all clear” less than ten minutes after the call came in, after emergency crews assessed the situation.

The call appears to be the result of a so-called “swatting” hoax, in which someone makes a false report of an emergency with the purpose of luring law enforcement to the home of a high-profile person.

Late last month, controversial Georgia Republican Rep.Marjorie Taylor Greenewas the target of a similar hoax, though the police department determined there was no actual emergency before dispatching anyone to her residence.

“I was just swatted. This is like the 8th time. On Christmas with my family here. My local police are the GREATEST and shouldn’t have to deal with this,” Greene wrotein a post on Xpublished on Christmas day.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.

Earlier this month, Judge Tanya Chutkan — the federal judge overseeing the election subversion case against former PresidentDonald Trump— was the victim of a similar swatting hoax at her Washington, D.C. home,CNNreported.

source: people.com