A fire broke out in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building beside the White House this morning, apparently from bad wiring in a closet near the VP’s ceremonial office. The structure remains intact, firefighters have been on the scene, the fire is under control, and all building occupants have been evacuated. The EEOB has been undergoing some renovation work for “modernization” purposes; there’s no word on how this affects that process, but this may drive home how badly needed that modernization was.

More from DCist, WaPo, NBC4, WJLA, and WTOP. Predictably, comment threads on the news are full of Cheney conspiracy nuts/jokers. Spot the best ones.

From TIME Magazine, a history of White House fires.

(Photo courtesy jsmjr.)

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Paulo Ordoveza

Roving Asian mendicant, can occasionally be seen wandering the streets of downtown Washington, muttering unintelligible gibberish to passers-by while pushing a “bag lady” shopping cart full of old blankets, American flags, soda cans, and healthy secondhand snacks from organic food shop dumpsters. Used to live in a cardboard box at 16th and K but the rent was too expensive.