LONDON: London’s Gatwick Airport, the second busiest airport in Britain, reopened a terminal on Friday after a security alert earlier in the day forced its evacuation and caused travel disruption for thousands of people.
Police sent a bomb disposal team to deal with a suspected prohibited item that they said had been found in luggage at the airport’s south terminal, 30 miles south of London.
“The earlier security alert has now been resolved and cleared by police,” Gatwick said in a statement. “The South Terminal is reopening to staff and will be open to passengers shortly.”
The incident disrupted weekend travel plans for thousands of passengers, with more than 600 flights due to land or take off on Friday from Gatwick, amounting to more than 121,000 passenger seats, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.
Thousands of passengers were seen outside the terminal and the surrounding area in videos posted online after the terminal shut for several hours. Emergency foil blankets were distributed to some of the passengers who were waiting in the cold, social media pictures showed.
In a separate incident earlier on Friday, London police carried out a controlled explosion near the US embassy in south London after discovering a suspect package. Police later said they believed it was a hoax.
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London’s Gatwick Airport reopens terminal following security alert
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London’s Gatwick Airport reopens terminal following security alert
- Police sent a bomb disposal team to deal with a suspected prohibited item that they said had been found in luggage at the airport’s south terminal, 30 miles south of London
- “The earlier security alert has now been resolved and cleared by police,” Gatwick said
US police detain ‘person of interest’ in deadly university shooting: mayor
- Police in the United States on Sunday detained a “person of interest” in relation to a shooting at Brown University that left two people dead and nine others wounded
PROVIDENCE: Police in the United States on Sunday detained a “person of interest” in relation to a shooting at Brown University that left two people dead and nine others wounded, Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said.
Speaking alongside the mayor at a news conference, Police Col. Oscar Perez said the person was detained “earlier this morning” and law enforcement officers are “not at this point” looking for anyone else in relation to the attack.
A gunman opened fire at the Ivy League school just after 4 p.m. (2100 GMT) on Saturday, with the school sending out an alert of “an active shooter near Barus and Holley Engineering.”
Two exams had been scheduled at the time.
Of the nine wounded one is in critical condition, seven are in stable condition and one has been discharged, Smiley said.
Police released 10-second footage of the suspect, seen from behind, walking briskly down a deserted street after opening fire inside a first-floor classroom.
The violence is the latest in a long line of school attacks in the United States, where attempts to restrict access to firearms face political deadlock.
The deadliest school shooting in US history took place at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, when South Korean student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before taking his own life.
Speaking alongside the mayor at a news conference, Police Col. Oscar Perez said the person was detained “earlier this morning” and law enforcement officers are “not at this point” looking for anyone else in relation to the attack.
A gunman opened fire at the Ivy League school just after 4 p.m. (2100 GMT) on Saturday, with the school sending out an alert of “an active shooter near Barus and Holley Engineering.”
Two exams had been scheduled at the time.
Of the nine wounded one is in critical condition, seven are in stable condition and one has been discharged, Smiley said.
Police released 10-second footage of the suspect, seen from behind, walking briskly down a deserted street after opening fire inside a first-floor classroom.
The violence is the latest in a long line of school attacks in the United States, where attempts to restrict access to firearms face political deadlock.
The deadliest school shooting in US history took place at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, when South Korean student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before taking his own life.
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