1 of 2 | Train service is resuming and people are returning to the South Terminal at London Gatwick Airport (pictured 2006) after a security alert forced the evacuation of part of the city’s secondary international hub Friday. File Photo by Hugo Philpott/UPI | License Photo
Train service is resuming and people are returning to the South Terminal at London Gatwick Airport after a security alert forced the evacuation of part of the city’s secondary international hub Friday.
Officials issued an all-clear just after 2:40 p.m. GMT Friday, although some delays and cancelations were expected to continue through the remainder of the day. Advertisement
The first train arrived at the airport following the closure at 3:25 p.m. GMT.
Airport authorities did not elaborate on the nature of the “security incident,” which forced the precautionary evacuation of a large part of the terminal.
Sussex Police were initially called around 8:20 a.m. GMT after reports of a “suspected prohibited item in luggage.”
A police bomb disposal unit was deployed while all train service to and from the terminal was stopped.
Airport officials handed out blankets to the thousands of passengers forced outside of the terminal building into the brisk London air for hours. Many were forced to spend hours outdoors after the terminal evacuation
“The earlier security alert has now been resolved and cleared by police. The South Terminal is reopening to staff and will be open to passengers shortly,” the airport said on X. Advertisement
“Trains will also start calling at Gatwick Airport once the terminal is fully reopened. We would like to thank everyone for their patience and understanding while this situation was resolved. Safety and security is always our top priority.”
The incident happened the same day police in London located and destroyed a suspicious package outside the U.S. Embassy in London.
