However police later confirmed they had detained a man dressed in a “Zorro” costume.
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Investigators found no connection between the two incidents. They were investigating a report of loud noises that spurred the first call, Pedregon said.
The incident was similar to one that occurred two weeks earlier in NY, when unconfirmed reports of gunfire at Kennedy International Airport led the police to evacuate two terminals there, causing hysteria among passengers whose fears were exacerbated by unconfirmed reports spread on social media. The chain reaction turned into a panic as crowds bolted.
Terrified passengers dropped their bags and escaped through emergency exits and ran on to the tarmac while others attempted to flee up luggage chutes on Sunday night as police with guns drawn swarmed the massive, multi-terminal airport. Others were ushered outside through security gates and into a parking lot, where several hundred people waited. The scare affected air traffic nationwide as flights in and out of LAX from airports across the country were re-routed or canceled.
The ground stop lasted 30 minutes and caused 27 arriving flights to be diverted. And LAX is no stranger to violence. In 2002, a gunman opened fire on travelers near the El Al Airlines ticket counter, killing one and injuring four others.
The panic quickly spread across the airport.
“You can’t blame the police because they think something is happening”.
Mobile phone footage taken by passengers captured the terror, including the arrest of the man dressed as Zorro. He said he was nonthreatening and posed for pictures and hugged a woman before walking outside the terminal, where he was confronted by police.
“People started dropping bags and running out of the terminal”, she said. The man was later released after telling police he was a performer on Hollywood Boulevard and was at the airport to pick up a passenger.
US airport security officials have been on heightened alert in recent months following deadly attacks at global airports in Belgium and Turkey.
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“When you don’t have security, don’t be surprised that somebody can drive you insane with a false alarm”, Yeffet said.
