Posted on 03/10/2006 2:43:01 PM PST by pitinkie
NEW YORK - Authorities at New York's La Guardia airport have evacuated a terminal and halted outbound flights after a security alert over a passenger's shoes, they said Friday.
"The decision was taken to remove passengers from the terminal out of an abundance of caution," said Yolande Clark, a spokeswoman for the federal Transport Security Administration.
The incident occurred shortly before 3:00 pm (2000 GMT) at the Delta Airlines terminal.
According to Clark, a male passenger who was selected for secondary screening set off an alarm when his shoes were passed through a detector that checks for explosives.
"The passenger then put on his shoes and exited the area," said Clark, who was unable to explain why the man was not stopped.
As well as evacuating the building, all outbound flights were being held up while security personnel searched for the passenger, Clark said.
Incoming flights landed as normal, she added.
Passengers' shoes have been regularly checked at airports since the attempt by British "shoe-bomber" Richard Reid to blow up a Paris-Miami flight in 2001 using explosives hidden in his soles.
They got one at the border in 2000, but that wasn't airplane security. The reason they questioned him so intently was because they thought he was nervous, since he was sweating profusely. But he was really sweating because he had malaria... We got lucky
His shoes are always detained for additional checks. They make sure they wand his shorts too!
Any other demographical info...?
Somehow I'm guessing that it's not a Christian pastor or a hasidic Jew.
Nothing else yet!
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