Sea-Tac security breach causes long lines, confusion
»Play Video
SEATAC, Wash. -- A Tuesday night security breach at Sea-Tac Airport clogged security areas and left thousands of angry passengers waiting in line.
Sea-Tac spokesman Perry Cooper said an unknown passenger entered a secure area of the airport through an exit at 7:30 p.m.
Unable to track the person down, airport officials decided to "dump" concourses C, D and the central terminal, which means everyone inside those areas was forced to leave and go back through security. Concourses A and B remained open.
After spending 90 minutes searching for the passenger using a photo capture from a security camera, Police and TSA officials finally found him just before 9 p.m.
"The unfortunate situation at this point was that it took too long to find the individual. So once it gets to a certain point, our officers made the decision to clear multiple concourses," Cooper said.
The passenger was questioned and released. Cooper blamed the breach on a misunderstanding and said it was not a "nefarious act."
After the breach was cleared, passengers began the process of re-screening at roughly 9:20 p.m. TSA officials said it took 30 minutes to screen the passengers.
The entire ordeal created a long night for many passengers.
"I was here about an hour early and we've been waiting about an hour right now to be let out of the airport, and now we're being told to be rescreened. It should be an interesting evening," said passenger Eric Horvitz.
Nancy Trott of Alaska Airlines said 20 of the company's outbound planes and 17 of its inbound planes were delayed as a result of the breach.
TSA officials say the circumstances surrounding this incident are under review.
Sea-Tac spokesman Perry Cooper said an unknown passenger entered a secure area of the airport through an exit at 7:30 p.m.
Unable to track the person down, airport officials decided to "dump" concourses C, D and the central terminal, which means everyone inside those areas was forced to leave and go back through security. Concourses A and B remained open.
After spending 90 minutes searching for the passenger using a photo capture from a security camera, Police and TSA officials finally found him just before 9 p.m.
"The unfortunate situation at this point was that it took too long to find the individual. So once it gets to a certain point, our officers made the decision to clear multiple concourses," Cooper said.
The passenger was questioned and released. Cooper blamed the breach on a misunderstanding and said it was not a "nefarious act."
After the breach was cleared, passengers began the process of re-screening at roughly 9:20 p.m. TSA officials said it took 30 minutes to screen the passengers.
The entire ordeal created a long night for many passengers.
"I was here about an hour early and we've been waiting about an hour right now to be let out of the airport, and now we're being told to be rescreened. It should be an interesting evening," said passenger Eric Horvitz.
Nancy Trott of Alaska Airlines said 20 of the company's outbound planes and 17 of its inbound planes were delayed as a result of the breach.
TSA officials say the circumstances surrounding this incident are under review.
Actually, many of the TSA screeners are ex LEO/military etc. and are pretty experienced. They operate under some constraints. They can't physically detain or arrest anyone. They must call a commissioned officer for that. The airport (such as it is) was never designed for the type of security we implement these days....it's all retrofit and afterthough. Would you rather go through a sallyport style turnstyle (think of the cage they trim an elephants toenails in) every time you fly?They're doing the best with what they have.....just so we can entertain ourselves by berating them while pecking away at our keyboards in our underwear.
Time to change the way TSA is paid for. No reason tax payers should have to be subsidizing this unnecessary agency. Start making flyer's pay for it. Tack on a $100 fee for each ticket and let them pay for it. No reason I should be forced to pay for it. I'm not going to fly again till TSA is gone and I don't have to void my civil rights just to take a flight somewhere.
One of the competing news stations reported that the person "accidentally" exited the concourse, and then re-entered through the exit rather than go through security again.Â
I have a couple of questions:Â
Did the door close behind him? Because if it did, I'm wondering why it didn't lock. Â Are the exit doors openable from the outside? If so, this seems like a huge problem with the security setup.Â
If the door didn't close, and he was able to walk right back in, why didn't the security tape show that this was what occurred and avoid the fuss?Â
Did he come in because others opened the door?Â
Isn't there a security officer right there at the exits?Â
Why couldn't a security guard get to the exit faster to locate him?Â
I cannot imagine how much this little boondoggle cost in terms of cancelled flights, missed connections, people who were late for appointments/work, etc. Seems like a lot to gamble on something that should be preventable from the start. (My daughter and her companions were held up at least an hour last night because of this).Â
Seriously? They can't hire a few more security guards (who are awake) and put a few security cameras in? There is no excuse for it taking that long to find him.Â
This is not the first time this has happened. I think they need to post more than one security guard who is SITTING at the exit. One guy yelling "hey! stop!" without getting up is obviously not enough...
Oh ya the memories of spending one month one day at Sea-Tac....
Amazing that fliers are still so stupid they put up with this nonsense.
OBL's legacy lives on...man, that creep really effed us maybe even beyond his own wildest dreams.
So if this person breached security without being checked, could said person have hid something for him or others to pick up later?  Seems the whole airport is now unsecured and should be shut down till every potted plant, newspaper and garbage can is inspected.  Oh wait yes this is security theater and has very little to do with real security.
Reason number 100 not to fly the unfriendly skies..... Security? What a bad joke....
@Funky-Munky Ok smart guy , just WTH would you do . let everyone wander around willy nilly ? These security people have a hard enough time without whiners like you wandering around wondering , what gate am i supposed to be at ? or would you rather richard reid sat down next to you on the plane.Â
You can't cure stupid.
my sympathies for the folks that had to endure this....led out of the concourses and then re-screened over 2 hours later? i'm not sure I have the patience for that.
 i'm sure the TSA folks were loving every second of it though - big excitement, very important job, protect the sanctity of the airport, etc
Hopefully they made him go to the back of the line. "Misunderstanding" not likely. There are signs in every conceivable language, along with TSA Agents at every entrance and exit. How the hell is that a "misunderstanding"? Plus, how long have we been dealing with this crap? It didn't start yesterday.
How was he not charged with a crime by the city or federal government?
@Steve Giovanis If you made a simple mistake, would you be upset if you were charged with a crime? I know I would. People make mistakes, I am guessing this person took a wrong turn and got lost. It happens but should they be charged for it? No.Â
I am just glad I was not there. It exhausts me just thinking about going through that!
@Thunder Fortunately my husband missed it too, he spends too much time at airports as it is...
@Susabelle @Thunder No doubt. My brother is a caddie (I wanted to spell it caddy), and flies all the time. I was thinking how lucky he was to miss this mess as well :)
Why are the passengers angry? It's just nanny government keeping you safe. Glad I don't fly.
@Alert Eagle Im Very glad you dont fly. One less idiot to deal with.
@sportbuff01 Using insults in debates typically means you do not have any intelligent arguments to present. Do you believe taking Listerene from grandpa, or giving little Jane a cavity search makes you safer on the plane?
@Alert Eagle I'm glad you don't fly either. .I hope you don't take a bus or any mode of transport that requires security checks.
@Steve Giovanis Never been on a bus in my life. I get to keep my Listerene and toothpaste when I travel.Â
@Alert Eagle Every now and then, security theater needs a drama scene.
@georgef @Alert Eagle correct! And you know they were hoping for a riot!!Â
That's not an accident; that's negligence. What the hell are they doing out there? They cannot secure the very first place someone trying to get in to do harm would check?
The security of these government systems would be a joke if it wasn't for the harm done to the traveling public. The government should allow airlines as the carrier to assume full responsibilities for the security and well being of their passengers, including sufficient insurance coverage to mitigate damage.
@contraryjim Anyone know how many terrorists they have caught?
@contraryjim Good to see the smart people are on this thread, unlike the sheeple on Facebook!!!