Built between 1871 and 1888, the Eisenhower Executive Office Building towers over the West Wing, where President Joe Biden works. It houses a wide array of White House workers. An email to White House staff sent Friday morning said "URGENT: EVACUATION" with the order to leave the building at the direction of security officers.
CHICAGO FIRE DEPARTMENT CALLS FOR MASS CASUALTY BUS AFTER EXPLOSION AT RESIDENTIAL BUILDING
A bird flies over the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex on June 1, 2021, in Washington D.C. A fire broke out at the building Friday morning. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
By 8:35 a.m., the White House grounds were relatively calm after the morning disturbance.
A 2007 fire at the executive building damaged then Vice President Dick Cheney's ceremonial suite of offices and led to the evacuation of 1,000 federal workers, including a marine who suffered cuts after punching through a fifth-floor window to escape, according to a New York Times article.