Ella Scott
A Hilton Hotel spokesperson has explained what happened to the thousands of meals that went unserved after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was interrupted by a gunman.
Last Saturday (25 April), US President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and other political figures were forced to abandon the annual event after gunfire was exchanged between 31-year-old Californian, Cole Tomas Allen, and security officials.
The suspected shooter is said to have rushed a security checkpoint whilst armed with a shotgun, handgun and knives.
The teacher was tackled to the ground and was taken to a nearby hospital, with NBC News suggesting he will be charged in federal court on Monday.
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Amid the attack, Secret Service officials successfully worked to remove Trump et al. from the hotel events space.
, White House Correspondents' Association president, thanked staff for working through the evening (Mandel NGAN / AFP via Getty Images)](https://resizer.ladbiblegroup.com/unsafe/rs:fit:3840:0:0:0/g:sm/q:70/aHR0cHM6Ly9ldS1pbWFnZXMuY29udGVudHN0YWNrLmNvbS92My9hc3NldHMvYmx0NDMxMzVjMWYwNjAxNzhkYS9ibHRiZmNhYjA2NTcwNTdlZTkyLzY5ZjBkMDU2Yzg5MGY4ZTFkZjNjNjQ4Zi9XZWlqaWFfSmlhbmdfc3RhdGVfZGlubmVyLmpwZw.webp)
Later, the father-of-five vowed that the Correspondents’ Dinner - the main source of revenue to finance the WHCA’s work - would be rescheduled.
Thankfully, the original feast, untouched by the 2,600 guests in attendance, was not wasted, as per reports.
Weijia Jiang, White House Correspondents' Association president and CBS News' senior White House correspondent, wrote on X that Hilton staff had donated the meals to two shelters used to house vulnerable women and children.
The employees apparently freeze-dried the steak and the lobster so they would have a longer shelf life.
“HUGE thank you to the staff that worked through the night under terrible circumstances,” the 42-year-old added.
In a statement to People Magazine, a spokesperson for the Washington Hilton said: "The hotel regularly donates unused food from events to support local organizations and their work in the community.
"Food from this weekend is being donated to our local community partners.[The] remaining produce items were composted and will be sent to farms for agricultural use.”
Food waste is estimated at between 30 and 40 percent of the food supply, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), with Recycle Track Systems (RTS) estimating that this works out at around 60 million tons every year.
One man who has spent years campaigning against food waste is King Charles III.
According to his step-son, cookbook author Tom Parker Bowles, the royal hates refuse, putting a ban on anything being thrown away after meal times.
"There is no waste, everything is recycled, everything is used from the table. If anything is left over from the dinner, that will be made into something else or appear the next day,” he said, as per The Mirror.
“Nothing's allowed to be thrown out.”
Royal author Richard Fitzwilliams has previously said that Charles is a ‘huge fan of recycling and upcycling’ and that if things can be used again, they will be.
The father-of-two and his wife, Queen Camilla, are currently on a state trip to the United States, where they were recently served afternoon tea featuring four sandwiches and scones at the British Embassy in Washington.
According to the head chef, these fillings included egg mayonnaise, smoked salmon with lemon butter and black pepper, pickled cucumber, and roast beef and horseradish.
He noted that the latter is not a ‘traditional’ afternoon tea serving, but that he flew British beef in, which he was ‘more than happy to use’ as it was a ‘special occasion.