WASHINGTON: US Secret Service agents rushed second gentleman Douglas Emhoff to safety on Tuesday, while students and administrators evacuated after a bomb threat was reported at a Washington, D.C., school celebrating a Black History Month event, Emhoff’s aides and school authorities said.
Emhoff, the husband of US Vice President Kamala Harris, was at Dunbar High School in the US capital for an event commemorating Black History Month. Students and teachers at the school also evacuated the building.
A series of bomb threats were made last week to at least a dozen historically Black colleges and universities nationwide, forcing the institutions to cancel classes and raising fears among Black communities. No explosives were found at any of the locations but the threats are being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Dunbar High school is the first high school for Black Americans in the United States, according to its website.
Emhoff’s staff told reporters that the school reported the threat to the US Secret Service, which protects US political leaders and their families. Emhoff was safe, his spokesperson said.
“We had a threat today to the facility so we … took the precaution of evacuating everybody, as you saw. I think everyone is safe. The building is clear. But I don’t have any specific details at this moment,” a District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) spokesperson said.
No other details were immediately available.