A shot at a security check caused panic at Atlanta Airport (USA) on Saturday. Apparently a gun was accidentally fired – the owner fled.
At the international airport in the US metropolis of Atlanta, the unintentional unloading of a weapon caused panic among the passengers. “There is no active shooter,” said the administration of Hartfield-Jackson Airport on Saturday in the online service Twitter. Rather, a weapon was unintentionally loaded during the security check.
After the loud shot, many people ran away, some fell. According to the authorities, three people were injured in the incident, but no information was given about the nature of their injuries. Airport operations could be resumed after just under two hours.
The incident is now being investigated, it said. According to the airport administration, security guards noticed a gun when checking the bags. When the owner tried to take the weapon, it went off unintentionally. The gun owner ran away, but the police knew his identity, it was said.
People ducked or ran away
On video recordings that the US news broadcaster CNN showed, how many people in the airport building ducked or ran away after the loud shot. Some bumped into suitcases or posts while trying to escape. “Down! Down!” Can be heard on the recording.
Initially, a gun attack was suspected. A CNN reporter, whose plane was about to land in Atlanta, reported that the pilot had informed the passengers that there was an “active shooter” and that they were therefore not allowed to land. Operations at the airport returned to normal later.
In the state of Georgia, the capital of which is Atlanta, a controversial law from 2014 allows the use of legal weapons in public areas of airports as well as in schools, churches and bars. According to federal law, however, it is illegal to bring a weapon into a controlled area of the traffic safety authority TSA.
The incident at the airport occurred on a particularly travel-intensive weekend. Thanksgiving is celebrated in the United States on Thursday. Millions of people visit their loved ones on this occasion.
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