London Luton Airport reopens following controlled explosion

Airport closed amid fears of a suspicious package this afternoon
Controlled explosion was carried out this evening and airport reopened
Police spokesman said chaos was started by ‘hairdryer or tongs’
At least 50 flights cancelled and others delayed as effects of scare ‘kick in’

Chris Kitching for MailOnline

and
Daily Mail Reporter

Published:
11:10 EST, 8 September 2014

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Updated:
02:28 EST, 9 September 2014

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London Luton Airport is to reopen after thousands of people were evacuated during a bomb scare that is believed to have been started by a hairdryer.

Travellers were left stranded on planes for hours and some 2,000 were evacuated from the airport after staff raised concerns about the ‘household device’ in a passenger’s hand luggage.

More than 50 flights were cancelled and 13 were diverted to Stansted, Birmingham and Gatwick.

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Hundreds of passengers were forced to wait outside for hours due to the security scare. A controlled explosion of the package has been carried out

Security alert: Staff are preparing to reopen the airport after thousands were forced to be evacuated this afternoon

Passenger Gavin Harper snapped this photo after the airport was cleared and a police robot arrived

Chaos for travellers: Flights have been diverted or delayed due to the police investigation. No one has been arrested in connection with day’s events

Nearby roads were also closed and an airport spokesman said there could be more disruption ‘as residual effects kick in’.

The alarm was raised at 1.36pm – but it was not until 5.15pm that a bomb disposal team carried out a controlled explosion. The airport reopened shortly after.

A spokesman for Bedforshire police said he believed a ‘hairdryer’ or ‘tongs’ was found in a piece of hand luggage, but was later not deemed to be a dangerous device.

No arrests have been made in connection with the day’s events.

Budget airline EasyJet said five flights scheduled to land at Luton had been diverted to Stansted and Birmingham airports, and several flights had been cancelled as a result of the security scare.

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Outside Luton Airport passenger Gavin Harper, 27, spoke about the moments the security alert began this afternoon.

He had been waiting for his luggage for an hour-and-a-half after being ushered out of the baggage reclaim area, along with hundreds of other passengers.

Mr Harper, from Machynlleth, Wales, said: ‘We were in the baggage reclaim area at the time, we got off the plane at about 1.30pm.

‘We were told it was a fire alarm, some people were saying we needed to move outside, we got outside and were progressively moved away from the building, further into the car park.

‘The bomb squad turned up soon after, but everyone has remained pretty calm to be honest.

Police seal off the road leading up to Luton airport after the discovery of a suspicious package in the departure lounge

Passengers were forced out of the terminal building during the security scare due to the discovery of the package

The Bedfordshire Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal team was called in to identify the item

‘Then a robot was going in, I expect there may be some kind of controlled explosion, but it’s difficult to say as we have not been told any more.

‘Some people just jumped in their cars and said they would come back for their luggage later.

‘I’m waiting here with a colleague, we’ve just come back from a conference in Bulgaria.’

Mr Harper works on the West Welsh Energy Sector Training project at Glyndwr University, Wales.

He continued: ‘British airports are always a bit chaotic at the best of times, but everyone is taking this in good spirit, and everyone is being nice.

Passengers sit on the grass outside the terminal building after being evacuated from the airport, which also saw incoming flights suspended

Luton Airport caters mostly to holiday destinations served by budget airlines and is the UK’s sixth busiest airport

Evacuation: About 2,000 people were forced to leave the terminal after the package was discovered

Police say they had to evacuate the airport to ensure the safety of passengers and staff

‘You feel a bit concerned for the people with kids, and the elderly people in this heat, but the airport staff are coming round with water and crisps.’

In a 5pm update, Luton said: ‘All flights have been suspended and the roads between Junction 10A of the M1, and leading up to the airport have been closed. The A1081 and London Road towards Luton town centre remain open to traffic travelling from the M1.

‘We are advising passengers to contact their airlines for information about specific flights which are being diverted to airports in the London area and the Midlands.’

Incoming flights from destinations including Barcelona, Rome and Dublin were diverted to other airports

The airport explained in an earlier statement: ‘We understand passengers will be frustrated by the delays they are experiencing.

‘We are working closely with the police to ensure passengers are not inconvenienced unnecessarily but we must ensure that the safety and security of all our passengers and staff remains our top priority.’

A spokeswoman for Bedfordshire Police said: ‘The decision was taken to close the airport to ensure the safety of passengers and staff.

‘The Explosive Ordnance Disposal team have arrived at the scene to identify the item.’

The evacuation has not affected the Luton Airport Parkway railway station, where trains are running normally.

Luton Airport caters mostly to holiday destinations served by budget airlines. It is the sixth busiest airport in the UK.

The incident comes just weeks after Britain raised its international terrorism alert to its second-highest level.