Atlanta Airport brief panic, evacuation over suspicious package
ATLANTA - A suspicious package led officials to evacuate the domestic terminal at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Wednesday morning.
The world's busiest airport saw dozens of passengers crammed outside struggling to figure out what was happening, reports CBS affiliate WGCL.
The airport said in a tweet it was merely being careful.
Out of an abundance of caution, APD is investigating a suspicious package and has evacuated the public areas of the domestic terminal.
— Atlanta Airport (@ATLairport) March 23, 2016
Some reported there had been shots fired
Since the attacks in Brussels yesterday, security officials at major transit hubs around the world have been on alert.
The Brussels attacks may have been why the call for evacuation led to a bit of panic among passengers.
Panic #ATLAirport TSA instructed everyone to run and clear main terminal pic.twitter.com/XuXNJtgsbV
— Jimmy Alignay (@jimmyalignay) March 23, 2016
Several on social media reported hearing shots fired at the Atlanta airport, but the Atlanta Police Department publicly debunked those claims.
There is no active shooter at the airport. A suspicious package has been cleared. ALL is OK!
— Atlanta Police Dept (@Atlanta_Police) March 23, 2016
The pair of explosions at Brussels Airport happened near the check-in desks in the departures hall, outside the more secure area where travelers pass through security screeners. This has sparked a debate over how to better protect these often-crowded spaces, reports CBS News correspondent Kris Van Cleave.