A security breach and a flashlight battery explosion shut down four terminals at Los Angeles International Airport for nearly four hours yesterday, delaying dozens of flights and clogging traffic for miles on surrounding city streets.
The evacuations at three interconnected domestic terminals came on the US' Labor Day weekend, one of the busiest travel holidays of the year, after a person bypassed security by walking up an exit staircase into the passenger area, local officials said.
Authorities were unable to locate the person who triggered the alarm but all passengers in the terminals were evacuated and re-screened.
A separate incident about 30 minutes later shut down the airport's busy international terminal when a plastic flashlight exploded in the bag of a Japanese tourist about to board a Korean Air flight for Tokyo, Los Angeles Mayor Jim Hahn told a news conference.
Police Chief Bill Bratton added the batteries in the flashlight apparently malfunctioned, causing a small explosion. Eight workers, including five with the Transportation Security Administration and three baggage handlers were taken to the hospital for treatment for minor injuries, Mr Hahn said.
"At this time we don't believe the explosion involved any intentional explosion or explosive device," Hahn said. "But that remains under investigation."
There have been several incidents involving Los Angeles airport in recent years, including a foiled plot to bomb it on New Year's Eve of 2000. On July 4, 2002, an Egyptian opened fire at the El Al counter at the airport's international terminal, killing two people.
The airport, which has eight domestic terminals and one dedicated to international flight, was the third-busiest for passenger traffic in the United States in 2003 and the
fifth-busiest in the world, according to the Airports Council International.