THE TAOISEACH was evacuated from his Washington hotel shortly after 4am yesterday because of a small fire in a generator on the roof.
All of the 700 or so guests in the Mayflower Hotel were evacuated from the 10-storey building and spent half an hour on the street, many of them in their night attire.
Mr Ahern's secret service detail rushed him away from the scene within minutes. Initially, the Taoiseach was reluctant to leave the scene until he had established that his daughter, Cecelia, was safe.
However, the secret service escort insisted that the Taoiseach should leave and he was driven away in an SUV. He was driven back about half an hour later when the all-clear was given.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern and Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey were among the guests who spent about half an hour on the street outside the hotel waiting while firemen entered the building.
Government officials and a number of people who came to Washington for the Taoiseach's address were also evacuated during the scare.