Presidential Emergency Operations Center
The Presidential Emergency Operations Center is a bunker-like structure underneath the East Wing of the White House. It serves as a secure shelter and communications center for the President of the United States and others in case of an emergency.History
The first White House bunker was constructed during World War II to protect President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the event of an aerial attack on Washington. The modern PEOC space has modern communications equipment including televisions and phones to coordinate with outside government entities. During a breach of White House security, to include the Washington, D.C. Air Defense Identification Zone violations, the President and other protectees will be relocated to the executive briefing room, next to the PEOC. Day to day, the PEOC is manned around the clock by joint-service military officers and non-commissioned officers.During the September 11 attacks, Vice President Dick Cheney, Lynne Cheney, Condoleezza Rice, Norman Mineta, Mary Matalin, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Joshua Bolten, Karen Hughes, Stephen Hadley, David Addington, Secret Service agents and other staff, including a U.S. Army major who was a White House Fellow, were evacuated from their offices in the White House to the PEOC. President Bush was in Florida at the time of the attacks.May 29, 2020
President Donald Trump retreated to the PEOC during the night of May 29, 2020, at the beginning of the George Floyd protests. After his trip to the bunker was reported in the news, Trump demanded that officials find and prosecute those responsible for the information getting to the press.
