US President Donald Trump's plans to commemorate America's 250th anniversary of independence with a rally on the National Mall were complicated on Saturday by severe storms that gathered near Washington, forcing event organisers to order an evacuation."Freedom 250 will share updates on programming and doors reopening," Freedom 250 spokesperson Danielle Alvarez said in a statement that encouraged participants to seek shelter at museums and federal buildings near the National Mall.

Washington's metro system also said several of its underground stations were available for shelter. Severe weather prompted the cancellation of celebrations in Hartford, Connecticut, along with Harrisburg and Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Spectators at  Boston's fireworks and concert were told to briefly seek shelter before events later resumed. Plans for fireworks were still moving forward in other cities such as New York, where tall ships passed the Statue of Liberty earlier in the day, recalling the fanfare around America's 200th anniversary in 1976.