Return to Transcripts main page
Breaking News
LAX Has Eighth Evacuation in Eight Days
Aired March 07, 2002 - 11:55 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Want to bring you the latest now on the situation at LAX in southern California.
We have Nancy Castles on the phone, with the airport, to tell us about two different situations. Nancy, good morning.
NANCY CASTLES, LAX SPOKESWOMAN: Good morning.
KAGAN: First, can you tell us the situation with this flight that, I think, was headed to Brazil?
CASTLES: No, the flight was coming from Brazil.
KAGAN: Coming from Brazil, OK.
CASTLES: At about 7:20 this morning, a caller called the operations office at Varig Airlines to report a specific threat against Varig Flight 8836. That's a flight from Rio De Janeiro to LAX. The flight had already landed about 20 minutes earlier and was docked at our Tom Bradley Inter -- Tom Bradley International Terminal.
At that point in time, the aircraft -- a decision was made to move the aircraft to the west remote end of the airport and the passengers remained in the Tom Bradley International Terminal.
KAGAN: So the passengers aren't on the plane right now, but they -- they're being held until you can figure out what the exact situation is?
CASTLES: Correct. And the Los Angeles Police Department bomb squad has responded to that scene. And that is still in progress.
KAGAN: And what about the situation at Terminal 3 with the ticket counter? We were getting word of an evacuation there.
CASTLES: Right. That evacuation is over, and, in fact, passengers are being let back into the terminal at this point in time. At 8:14 this morning, airport police received a call that there was an item resembling -- a suspicious item, discovered in one of the explosive detection machines, in the Terminal 3 ticket counter area.
That ticket counter area on Terminal 3 was evacuated for 20 minutes until the L.A. Police Department bomb squad declared that item not to be a threat. So, again passengers are being let back into -- are being rescreened back into Terminal 3 after a 20 minutes -- 20 minute evacuation and completion of that incident.
KAGAN: Nancy, I have to ask you overall, what is going on with LAX? What is happening with your airport? It seems like almost everyday, we're showing pictures of some kind of evacuation taking place.
CASTLES: Well, the evacuations -- this is highly, highly unusual. This past week has been phenomenal for us. At least -- and the evacuations are for a variety of different reasons. Some of them are for unattended items left in the terminals, baggage claim areas, on the sidewalks, by inattentive passengers.
KAGAN: But, certainly, Nancy, these -- this is not a situation that's not faced in every airport across America. Why is LAX having evacuation after evacuation?
CASTLES: Well, we are trying to be as safe -- we are trying to ensure the public safety, for not only the traveling public but also for all of the employees and visitors to the airport. And we are resolved to have a zero tolerance, in compliance with the U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Norm Minetta's charge to have a zero tolerance for security issues.
KAGAN: Understandable.
CASTLES: And unfortunately, this has been, as I said, a very unusual week for us, where in the last eight days we have had eight terminal evacuations. So this is, and as I said, for a variety of different reasons.
KAGAN: Right. Well, Nancy Castles at LAX, thank you very much for explaining the latest situation. Looks like things are getting under control there and good luck with keeping the airport safe.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
