It was a rough first day for a White House communications intern whose public fainting brought press secretary Josh Earnest's briefing to an abrupt end.

It happened 57 minutes into the daily briefing in the press room. The intern - who asked that the press pool not release her name - was standing along the south wall.

Positioned between two other new comms interns, the young woman suddenly slumped to her right and collapsed, creating a stir and prompting Earnest to declare his session over.

"Oh goodness," Earnest said as the commotion unfolded.

A White House official told a pool reporter that it was the intern's first day here. Deputy Press Secretary Eric Schultz rushed water over to the woman, and another aide brought out a small box of M&Ms.

"Thank you for ending it [the briefing]," one reporter joked after it was clear the intern was alright.

The intern told a print pool reporter that she had been feeling "faint" earlier, but didn't skip lunch so wasn't sure why it happened. She didn't require medical treatment in the briefing room.