Vehicle crashes into White House gate, killing driver; Secret Service says 'no threat

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: ABC News

May 5, 2024, 2:53 AM


A vehicle traveling "at a high rate of speed" crashed into a gate at the White House complex late Saturday, killing the driver, a U.S. Secret Service spokesperson said.

There was "no threat" to the White House after the vehicle crashed into a barricade just before 10:30 p.m., officials said in a statement.

"Security protocols were implemented as officers cleared the vehicle and attempted to render aid to the driver who was discovered deceased," the statement said.

The Washington Metropolitan Police will investigate the crash alongside the Secret Service.

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/vehicle-crashes-white-house-gate-killing-driver-secret/story?id=109936751

[Bernardo de La Paz]

1. Bizarre. Suicide? Lack of research? Stochastic probe?

[Irish_Dem]

2. I was in Washington DC years ago, and no traffic was allowed in front of the WH.

Maybe that has changed?

[RipVanWinkle]

3. I was wondering the same thing.

I was in DC in 1999 and I don't remember the WH being that easy to drive up to.

[Irish_Dem]

4. When I was there, the streets were blocked off in front of the WH.

You could walk or ride a bike in front of the WH.
But no cars.

So either that has changed, or this driver was not supposed to be there.
It was not a traffic accident as claimed?

[John1956PA]

16. I think the event occurred at the edge of the White House Campus.

I am thinking that the crash site is blocks away from the White House structure.

[electric_blue68]

31. I was there as an adult when it was allowed through, then later in Clinton's term it changed.

[Irish_Dem]

5. How fast do you have to go to kill yourself in a car ramming a gate?

[BumRushDaShow]

6. Am wondering if it is a DUI or DWI

[3Hotdogs]

17. Or heart attack at the wheel.

I was 18 and working on the municipal road department sweeping gravel off the street after a seal coating operation. The road was curved and a car came around the bend but didn't take the curve --- headed straight for us.

We ran away and the car continued on and ran into an oak tree on the berm.


Cops said the driver was dead at the wheel..

[BumRushDaShow]

18. Yup or even a stuck accelerator

I remember last fall when this happened -

[BootinUp]

26. I hadn't seen the video on that. So that car was ballistic.

Looked to be going 100 mph +

[BumRushDaShow]

29. Yeah

I had seen various vids from different angles around the time it happened including one that showed some of the car going airborne before a building blocked the view but this video really showed it.

[Captain Zero]

32. Generally trees are stronger than gates, but this was a white house gate

for what that's worth.

[Irish_Dem]

19. Yes you would have to be driving fast to kill yourself.

Which sounds like some sort of impairment.
Drugs, alcohol, maybe a medical problem.

Maybe not wearing a seatbelt?

[FSogol]

7. The gate/fence is an immovable object so 30 mph will probably do it.

[Irish_Dem]

20. I think you have to be moving faster than that to kill yourself.

[FSogol]

24. Hitting an immovable object doubles the effect of the impact.

30 mph becomes 60 mph.

[BootinUp]

25. You make a good point. I would like to see what the gate looks like.

[Irish_Dem]

28. Interesting

[BootinUp]

8. Over 40 be my guess. But there are many variables of course.

Like the kind of vehicle and its safety features.

[csziggy]

30. From a YouTube video last night it ran into a concrete barrier

?si=-J5SiazF264wZykH

[Irish_Dem]

34. Concrete is a stronger obstacle than a gate.

[IronLionZion]

36. Those barriers are specifically designed to stop high speed crashes

so the driver never had a chance. It wasn't going to end well at any speed.

[forgotmylogin]

33. Depends on many factors.

When the cars are going slowly, the risk of serious injury hovers at about 1%. When the speed goes to 50 mph, the risk of injury increases to about 69%, with the risk of severe injuries or fatality going up to 52%. When either car is going 70 miles per hour or more, a fatality or serious injury is almost guaranteed.

This is why there is constant urging for people to wear seat belts no matter how short a trip or how fast they are going. A seat belt can't help if a vehicle is crushed, or someone drives off a cliff or flips the car into water, but most auto accidents people will experience aren't that extreme and a seat belt improves survivability and thus escapability in minor or moderate accidents.

A 40 mph dead-stop impact with a brick wall while wearing the seat belt might cause bruising from the seat belt and moderate injuries but is much more survivable if it prevents your face, skull, and body from slamming into the dashboard, the windshield, or the steering wheel. One possibility in accidents is the steering wheel will break off and reveal sharp edges that are no good if you're flung into them at 30mph. Without being restrained by your belt, there's much more chance of serious facial or eye injuries, teeth knocked out, blunt force trauma, and potentially going unconscious which may waste precious time the driver has to escape if a fire occurs. In the rare instance where a car flips or tumbles, you definitely want to be secured and hopefully conscious when you come to a stop instead of being tumbled rag-doll inside where random parts of your body will impact everything and cause unconsciousness, and broken bones or injuries that prevent you from exiting the vehicle before help arrives.

A lot of secure areas and stores have those deeply excavated metal poles or concrete planters essentially "immovable objects" to prevent a car from hitting a less secure door and causing more damage. And there's always unknown factors and pre-existing conditions - even a minor survivable crash can trigger a heart attack or a brain-bleed from an arterial weak place or aneurism that just needed one good impact to set it off.

[Irish_Dem]

35. Yes perhaps not wearing his seatbelt or a medical problem.

[gab13by13]

9. Did the driver have a red hat?

[Irish_Dem]

21. That was my first thought.

Someone doing dirty work for Trump.

[ffr]

22. The chances of that are 100%

Allegedly, just another impressionable brain damaged maggot who decided that after seeing his world view shattered, was going to go down in his own, I-can't-handle-the-truth-that-Trump-is-a-Russian-asset-and-an-American-traitor, ball of glory.

[littlemissmartypants]

10. This is making me suspect that the driver experienced an acute medical emergency.

...Was possibly deceased or incapacitated before the crash even.

Condolences to family and friends of the driver. ❤️

[Roy Rolling]

11. This 👆

I sense a smartypants with the sense to determine a drunk driver from a diabetic emergency. But even without that context, until the facts come out I’ll go with a medical emergency. Why stress?

[JT45242]

13. That's what I thought...given airbags etc

Modern cars with crumple zones, air bags, etc usually don't have fatalities in one car accidents that don't have a roll over.

Plus I can't imagine given the traffic near the white house that you could get up a lot of speed in most cars.

[mopinko]

14. unless it was an old car. any modern car, the driver survives that crash.

[COL Mustard]

15. Thank you for taking

The high road. I’m sure there will be more information, so we could all give a little grace to the person who died.

[littlemissmartypants]

23. ❤️

[bucolic_frolic]

12. Would be the start to a riveting spy thriller

If the driver were deceased hours before the crash.

[Bucky]

38. "We have to cover it up," the pathologist told the secret service agent...

"... but this driver died 5 hours ago... from getting a covid vaccine!!!"

[bucolic_frolic]

39. LOL, yeah that'il get them going

Q-Anon at the Gates of the White House. And it was a satellite-guided Tesla on auto-pilot, so someone wanted him dead!

[happybird]

27. Local article:

https://wtop.com/dc/2024/05/secret-service-says-no-threat-to-white-house-as-dc-police-investigate-deadly-white-house-barrier-crash/

Says “barrier” not “gate.”

Edit:
Intersection of NY Ave and 15th St

[Bucky]

37. Yet Republicans keep on poking sticks at the zoo animals among Us

I foresee January 6th becoming the quadrennial ritual for at least a decade. Well, probably it'll be December 15th at half a dozen state capitals this year. But they really are determined to create some violence in our elections. It's disgusting

[onetexan]

40. Test run to see how impermeable the fence is?

[Kennah]

41. Dare I dream that it's a Trump advisor working on TFG's return to the White House options?

[muriel_volestrangler]

42. Only being investigated as a traffic crash

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.

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