WASHINGTON, March 7 (Xinhua) -- The White House was put under a security lockdown on Saturday morning after a nearby vendor cart caught fire just prior to President Barack Obama's departure for Selma, Alabama, media reports said.
The White House lockdown came as "press gathered outside near the South Lawn for the departure of President Obama and the First Family on the way to Selma, Ala., for a historic 50th anniversary civil rights march," a White House pool report said.
A loud noise had prompted the Secret Service to move the members of the press back into the briefing room, lock the doors and put the building on lockdown, pool report said earlier.
Secret Service spokesman Brian Leary told local media that a vendor cart caught fire around 10 a.m. at 15th and G streets. That was not considered as a serious threat after firefighters responded and contained the blaze, U.S. media reported.
Around the same time, a bomb-sniffing dog detected something on a vehicle not far from the presidential residence and offices. Although there's no indication that the two incidents were related, the vehicle was being checked out by the Secret Service and other officials, according to media reports.
Obama and his family were not on the South Lawn when the noise was heard.
They had arrived at Andrews Air Force Base by motorcade instead of helicopter and boarded Air Force One for their trip to Selma after about 50 minutes delay caused by the lockdown, according to the pool report.
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