dailyloe.com – A shooting incident occurred outside the ballroom during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday evening, leaving a University of Tennessee student shaken but safe. Gail Fanning, a student representing her university’s news station, described the chaos as she heard a loud clang and witnessed people fleeing into the ballroom.
The gunman, identified as 31-year-old Cole Allen, is now in custody, according to officials. Fanning, who is 5′1″ tall, quickly hid under a table and dialed 911, reporting her location and situation to the dispatcher.
Fanning, attending the dinner as the 2026 Carter Holland Memorial Scholarship recipient, was seated next to students from the University of Maryland and the University of Missouri. She noted that the incident occurred on the opposite side of the ballroom, with shots fired outside rather than inside.
“I had just poured a glass of Chardonnay. I am 21, to clarify that. And I was eating a piece of bread. And I just hear a clang sound,” Fanning recounted. Her immediate reaction was to duck under the table after seeing people run.
While hiding, she informed the 911 dispatcher of her name and location, stating, “I am under a table. All I see is white cloth.” Fanning’s instinctual response was shaped by years of active shooter drills conducted during her K-12 education.
“I’ve been through so many gunman drills in K-12, so many practices. And I was like, if anything happens, hide, call 911,” she explained. She also reached out to her mother and the news director at the University of Tennessee’s Volunteer Channel to confirm her safety.
Fanning expressed her excitement about attending the dinner, having prepared for months. She reflected on her experience watching the event in 2021 with her mother, highlighting the stark contrast to her current situation.
