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False report of gunfire causes panic at major US airport
For the second time this month a false report of gunfire has caused chaos and panic at a major US airport.
Los Angeles Airport was evacuated Sunday night after reports of gunfire, which like an earlier incident at New York JFK two weeks ago, proved to be a false alarm.
Hundreds of passengers fled in panic out of the airport and on to the tarmac with all flights in and out of LAX grounded for about two hours.
Los Angeles police spokesman Andy Neiman said the evacuation was sparked by nothing more than ‘loud noises.’
However police later confirmed they had detained a man dressed in a ‘Zorro’ costume.
Police gave no indication what role the man had in the security alert.
Major flight delays occurred as all evacuated passengers were required to be rescreened and traffic was heavily backed up on approach roads to the airport.
LAX was the scene of a real shooting in 2013 when a man opened fire a terminal al building killing a TSA agent and injuring three others.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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