The National Christmas Tree is dark because of the government shutdown

Susanna Heller

Dec 24, 2018, 19:55 IST

The National Christmas Tree is dark because of the government shutdown

Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Closed for the holidays.

The federal government entered a partial shutdown Friday after the House and Senate adjourned without reaching a spending deal.
National parks around the US will be closed to the public throughout the duration of the shutdown - including the National Christmas Tree, located in Washington, D.C.
The Tree, a Capitol staple since 1913, has gone dark. It will remain dark throughout the shutdown.
Further exacerbating the situation, the tree was damaged Friday when a man in attempted to climb it, The Hill reported. The repairs are expected to be "complicated."
"During the federal government shutdown, the White House Visitor Center and National Christmas Tree site will be closed. Restroom facilities will be closed. In case of emergency, call 911," a note on the National Parks Service's website says.
A senior administration official told Business Insider that the following federal agencies and locations will remain active and open: Transportation Security Administration, Department of Justice, US Postal Service, Smithsonian Institution, National Weather Service, and The Statue of Liberty.

Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post via Getty Images

A tourist takes a photo of the dark tree.

National Christmas Tree government shutdown

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Tourists and visitors are unable to visit the National Christmas Tree near the White House because of the ongoing partial federal government shutdown.