Security Scare Closes Delta Terminal at LaGuardia

On Friday, a domestic Delta Air Lines terminal was closed for roughly two hours when a man’s shoes falsely triggered an explosives alarm, Reuters reports.

A U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) spokesperson told Reuters the man walked through the security checkpoint at about 3 p.m. EST on Friday, and he did not notice the alarm so he help on walking. That man was not located but the alarm was determined to be false, according to Reuters.

Departing flights from the terminal resumed around 5 p.m. EST, Reuters reports.

“The passenger left the checkpoint before the screening was complete, so TSA evacuated the terminal and postponed outgoing flights,” Andrea McCauley, a TSA spokeswoman, told Reuters.

Departing flights from the terminal were delayed but arrivals were not disrupted, Reuters reports.

“At this point, the airport is fully operational,” McCauley told Reuters.

The screening device that set off the alarm is occasionally triggered by chemicals other than explosives, McCauley told Reuters, namely traces of fertilizer sometimes found on the soles of shoes.

The “D” terminal was evacuated for roughly two hours, when hundreds of passengers were rescreened and allowed to enter once again, Reuters reports.

In February, an airport in Long Beach, Calif., was temporarily closed when a man wearing baggy clothes fled from security guards who determined he needed additional screening, according to Reuters.

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