Officers search for a gun owner who fled an Atlanta airport after his weapon ran out of fire, leaving panicked passengers bolting on the tarmac on Saturday, halting flights during the busy Thanksgiving holiday period Went.
Three people received non-life-threatening injuries after they were shot at 1.30 p.m. in the security check area at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said in a statement.
Some two hours later, officials gave the “all-clear” and flights resumed, the airport said on Twitter.
An arrest warrant was issued for the 42-year-old gun owner, who police named Kenny Wells. Atlanta Police Major Reginald Moorman said at a news conference that he was being sought at a commercial airport on charges of carrying a concealed weapon, possession of a firearm by a convicted criminal, discharging a firearm, and reckless conduct. .
The gun discharge occurred when a screening checkpoint employee was searching the bag “due to a prohibited item identified by X-ray,” the TSA said in a statement. “They advised the passenger not to touch the property,” the TSA said. and as soon as they opened the compartment containing the prohibited articles, the passenger entered the bag and grabbed a shotgun, from which he was discharged.”
Airport spokesman Andrew Gobeel told CNN that the gun owner fled the airport, although “he was not allowed to leave.” “Since he was being investigated, we have all his information,” Gobil said.
There was immediate fear that an active shooter had opened fire, which drove the crowd out of the terminal onto the tarmac.
“More and more people started running — there was screaming,” said passenger Erica Zeidler, who sent photos to CNN that showed dozens of people scrambling on the tarmac, some pulling suitcases.
Police said one person “requested EMS after experiencing a collapse in the airport courtyard, which is not in the same area of the security check point, and two others complained of shortness of breath.”
According to aviation analytics provider Official Airline Guide (OAG), Hartsfield-Jackson was the busiest airport in the world in 2021. The TSA said Atlanta airport was expected to be particularly busy during the Thanksgiving travel period, with pre-pandemic-sized crowds expected at security checkpoints from Friday, November 19 to Sunday, November 28.
The airport tweeted at 3.24 pm, “Authorities have given full clearance for #ATLAirport and normal operations are resuming.”
The TSA said a record number of firearms were seized at US airport checkpoints in the first nine months of 2021. Nationwide, TSA officials have barred 4,495 airline passengers from carrying firearms on their flights, surpassing the 4,432 firearms captured throughout 2019. In Atlanta alone, 450 firearms were detected at airport checkpoints in 2021.
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