Washington, D.C

DC ramps up inauguration day security early amid heightened election concerns

Published

4 hours ago

October 16, 2024

DC ramps up inauguration day security early amid heightened election concerns

WASHINGTON (7News) — Preparations for Inauguration Day have begun in D.C. much earlier than usual. 7News is looking into why riot fencing and barriers are already up around the White House.

Law enforcement sources told Reporter John Gonzalez there are more security concerns this election year. Outside of the White House, security measures are already visible nearly 100 days before the inauguration.

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) generally begins prep work and logistics well ahead of the inauguration but putting up riot fencing three weeks before the election is very telling. 10-foot fencing and concrete barriers now surround Lafayette Park.

The National Park Service (NPS) said the closures and fencing are in place to make it easier for building materials to be delivered and heavy machinery to be stored. Law enforcement sources told 7News that election day three weeks away is a big factor this year, and officials are concerned that the period between Election Day and Inauguration Day could be extraordinarily tense.

MPD is considering going to what’s called Alpha Bravo 12-hour days starting before the election and continuing through inauguration day. There is also talk in the department about canceling days off during the Election and Inauguration weeks, but nothing is confirmed yet.

READ MORE | Heightened security expected during vote count for 2024 presidential election: DHS

Another law enforcement source said police agencies in the city want security measures in place before the election results are in.

Security and terrorism specialist Jim Ortte said regardless of the winner, protests are highly likely, and terrorism fears are real this fall because of all the world events.

“One of the first times it’s been in October and you have to question why is that? And normally there’s protest on both sides, no matter who wins, there’s going to be some type of protest. But with the world events, to me that’s more concerning. You’ve had three attempts against the former president who is now running for president,” said Ortte. “I suspect that’s why they’re building the security early. There are benefits because then it gives the authorities more time to do investigative and observation techniques. Also, they can study their own design of the barrier and see if they have any lapses.” According to an NPS release, work for the presidential inauguration typically begins in November, but this year, preparation began early “to accommodate additional time needed for a safer and more secure environment for construction activities.”

Parade stands are also going up and Pennsylvania Avenue is being repaved.

7News has learned this fencing will be around until February.

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Washington, D.C

Panda diplomacy: Chinese pandas land in DC weeks before election

Published

11 hours ago

October 15, 2024

Press Room

Panda diplomacy: Chinese pandas land in DC weeks before election

PANDA WATCH! Pandas leave airport on way to National Zoo

The pandas are on the ground and on their way to the National Zoo!

WASHINGTON – As of Tuesday morning, panda-monium is officially back in Washington.

Giant pandas Bao Li and Qing Bao arrived at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute shortly before noon, after a roughly 19-hour, 8,250-mile trip from Chengdu, China.

One expert on China said the timing – three weeks before the U.S. presidential election – may not be a coincidence.

“I assume that everything is calculated,” said the Stimson Center’s Yun Sun, who added that the panda’s arrival may have been orchestrated with one particular candidate in mind.

“If [former President Donald] Trump wins, the Chinese will be expecting an uphill, tough battle with Trump, at least on trade and most likely on other things as well,” explained Sun. “So, if they decide to send a panda to Washington after Trump wins the election, it will be perceived as China basically paying respect to Trump already or trying to send Trump a gift after he wins the election, so that hopefully Trump will be nicer to China. I don’t think the Chinese want to strike that impression, that China is already acknowledging defeat or trying to play nice with Trump from the very beginning.”

But, she added, she does believe Chinese officials want pandas at the National Zoo.

“Its target audience is all the visitors from all over the country to Washington,” Sun continued. “It will send the message of China’s friendliness, and China’s desire to have friendly ties with American people.”

While the pandas’ arrival in Washington came before the election, it will take some time for them to become acclimated.

Zoo officials said the pandas will be quarantined for at least 30 days. Bao Li and Qing Bao are expected to make their public debut on January 24, 2025.

China sending two new pandas to National Zoo

Two new giant pandas are on the way to the National Zoo less than a year after the previous pair left. The zoo will be closed Tuesday to give the new pandas some time to settle in. FOX 5’s Sierra Fox spoke to people outside the zoo who are eager for their return.

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Washington, D.C

New DC panda Bao Li's mom was a star at the National Zoo, too

Published

19 hours ago

October 15, 2024

Press Room

New DC panda Bao Li's mom was a star at the National Zoo, too

The Panda Express has landed! A specially outfitted FedEx plane landed Tuesday morning at Dulles International Airport with some VIP passengers: a pair of 3-year-old pandas who will take up residence at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo.

Bao Li and Qing Bao were born in China. Although the surroundings will be new for both of them, Bao Li’s D.C. roots go deep: He’s a third-generation Washingtonian!

His grandparents, Mei Xiang and Tian Tian, lived at the National Zoo for nearly a quarter-century and welcomed the zoo’s first-ever surviving panda cubs. The first, Tai Shan, arrived in 2005, but years went by before another was born, and that cub lived for just a week.

The following year, in 2013, a squirming newborn arrived, along with a stillborn twin. But as D.C. held its collective breath, the living cub thrived.

At 100 days old, she was named Bao Bao, and she provided plenty of adorable entertainment for panda fans.

She squawked loudly during vet exams captured on video. (Make sure your volume is up for this one.)

She tumbled (safely — whew!) down a pile of rocks, with her nervous mom hurrying to check on her after the spill.

And she even prolonged the excitement when the National Zoo’s webcam went dark during a government shutdown. When the cams went live again, she had a new surprise: Her eyes had opened.

Maybe it was just us, but Bao Bao always seemed to know when to drum up some attention. She was the source of some adorable headlines. (Case in point: Mei Xiang Cuddles Cub Rather Than Snacking.)

There was a paternity drama — was her biological father the zoo’s own Tian Tian, or another male panda whose sperm was also used in a fertility attempt? (Verdict: Tian Tian IS the father.)

Paul J. Richards/AFP via Getty Images

From 2014: Bao Bao is seen by the media for the first time Jan. 6, 2014, inside her glass enclosure at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo.

And just before Christmas 2014, Bao Bao spent 24 hours in a tree, diverting focus from holiday celebrations before she finally climbed down.

But after becoming a big sister, Bao Bao was ready to strike out on her own.

From 2017: Bao Bao looks up at a zookeeper who is going to give her a treat.

She moved to China in 2017 and became a mom, including to a set of twins born there in 2021. One of those twins was Bao Li. Now, he’s made the journey for himself.

However, the public will have to wait a bit longer to visit the zoo’s newest residents.

Bao Li and Qing Bao are expected to be quarantined for at least 30 days, and they’ll also need time to get settled in and acclimated to their new surroundings before the panda exhibit reopens to the public. There’s no exact date set yet for that.

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Washington, D.C

2 giant pandas to land in DC Tuesday. They’re destined for the National Zoo – WTOP News

Published

1 day ago

October 15, 2024

Press Room

2 giant pandas to land in DC Tuesday. They’re destined for the National Zoo – WTOP News

After 11 months, the District’s panda lovers will no longer have to bear the pain of a panda-less National Zoo.

Two-year-old male giant panda Bao Li in his habitat at Shenshuping Base in Wolong, China, May 16, 2024. Two new giant pandas are returning to Washington’s National Zoo from China this year. The announcement from the Smithsonian Institution on Wednesday comes about half a year after the zoo sent its three pandas back to China. (Roshan Patel, Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute via AP)
(AP/Roshan Patel)

AP/Roshan Patel

Panda mobile — Two-year-old Qing Bao in her habitat at Dujiangyan Base in Sichuan, China.
(left)

Giant Panda statues are stored in a back parking lot at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, DC, on November 7, 2023. All three of the zoo's pandas are leaving for China by the end of the year, bringing at least a temporary end to a decades-old connection between the cuddly animal and the US capital. And while the pandas' departure had been expected due to contractual obligations, many can't help but see the shift as reflective of the growing strains between Beijing and Washington. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images) — Giant Panda statues are stored in a back parking lot at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, DC, on November 7, 2023. All three of the zoo’s pandas are leaving for China by the end of the year, bringing at least a temporary end to a decades-old connection between the cuddly animal and the US capital. And while the pandas’ departure had been expected due to contractual obligations, many can’t help but see the shift as reflective of the growing strains between Beijing and Washington. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP)
(Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

Giant panda Bao Bao travels by a FedEx truck to Dulles International Airport, where she will board a cargo plane bound for China on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017. (Courtesy NBC Washington) — Giant panda Bao Bao travels by a FedEx truck to Dulles International Airport, where she will board a cargo plane bound for China on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017.
(Courtesy NBC Washington)

Precious Moment of Mother Panda, Bao Bao and her Cub, Bao Li
(Getty Images/Foreverhappy-Mee)

Fans of the Smithsonian National Zoo are pining in anticipation as two new giant pandas from China are expected to land in D.C. Tuesday, nearly a year after the zoo’s exhibit was devastatingly vacated.

It’s been 11 months since three of the famed bears left the District, leaving local panda lovers in a lurch. Now, they will no longer have to bear the pain of a panda-less National Zoo.

Officials said Monday that Bao Li and Qing Bao, both three years old, were heading to D.C. — prompting panda-monium with the bears much-anticipated return to the nation’s capital now in sight.

The “Panda Express” — a FedEx Boeing 777 cargo jet carrying the bears — is scheduled to land Tuesday.

It marks the continuation of the giant panda conservation program partnership between China and the U.S.

11 months of despair for DC with no pandas

On the afternoon of Nov. 8, 2023, beloved bears Tian Tian, Mei Xiang and Xiao Qi Ji boarded the “Panda Express” at Dulles International Airport.

The three bears flew 19 hours to the Wolong Panda Reserve in Chengdu, China. It was a tough goodbye for zoo staff and fans with uncertainty about whether the black-and-white bears would ever return.

Mei Xiang and Tian Tian first arrived at the National Zoo in December 2000. In 2020, Mei Xiang gave birth to Xiao Qi Ji, becoming the oldest panda in the U.S. to give birth.

The zoo’s panda exhibit brought in millions of visitors each year. But it’s been unoccupied since November. In the panda’s absence, the zoo upgraded the enclosure, making improvements to help visitors get a clearer view of the pandas among other changes.

What do we know about Bao Li and Qing Bao

The pandas left southwest China on Monday, ready for travel with snacks such as bamboo shoots and carrots as well as medications in hand, according to the China Wildlife Conservation Association.

Last May, the National Zoo announced the two pandas would be transported to the zoo by the end of 2024.

They’re the first pair of pandas China has sent to D.C. in 24 years.

One of the pandas arriving Tuesday is a descendant of the Smithsonian’s former “panda family.” Bao Li is the son of Bao Bao, who was born at the D.C. zoo in 2013.

“He reminds me a lot of his grandfather, Tian Tian,” panda keeper Mariel Lally told CNN. She will be taking the journey to D.C. with Bao Li and Qing Bao.

‘Panda diplomacy’ in a black-and-white world

The National Zoo was the first in the U.S. to take part in what’s become known as “panda diplomacy.”

When a mass exodus of pandas over the past couple of years took place as panda leases between U.S. zoos and China expired, some feared the partnerships were coming to a close.

But around the time the Smithsonian’s pandas departed last November, Chinese President Xi Jinping signaled that China would send new pandas to the U.S., calling them “envoys of friendship between the Chinese and American peoples.”

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