The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is trying to improve its image, but it isn't doing very well. On Saturday, John F. Kennedy International Airport was forced to evacuate because a TSA screener didn't realize that his metal detector was unplugged.
Hundreds of travelers and staff had to leave the airport after screener Alija Abdul Majed failed to realize that his metal detector wasn't even plugged in. He was operating the unplugged machine during a morning shift in Terminal 7. Abdul didn't even notice that the detector's signature alert lights weren't flashing as travelers passed through the machines.
The issue caused a lot of chaos as the terminal, used by British Airways, United and other airlines, was evacuated and shut down for two hours. Two planes even had to be called back from the runway and hundreds of travelers had to be rescreened due to the mishap. Eight to 10 flights were delayed all because of the unplugged machine, The New York Post reports.
The TSA only said that a machine experienced a "malfunction," but the issue was a careless mistake that could have led to severe problems.
The issue was discovered by higher up TSA officials around 9:45 a.m. and screening checkpoints were re-opened by 11:45 a.m. Fliers were furious over the issue. One traveler heading to Los Angeles took to Twitter to say "How many hours will it take to send a terminal full of people BACK through security," Newsmax quoted.
Myke Mansberger tweeted: "Chaos+confusion as 'every person' evacuated at #JFK Airport T7 #NYC. TSA seems frantic+confused. I'm nervous+annoyed," as quoted by Nine MSN.
A law-enforcement source told Fox News, "The truth is, this is the failure of the most basic level of diligence. How can you expect the public to feel confident of the mission of the TSA if they don't even know if the lights are turned on?"
A day after the incident, the TSA cracked down on their security screeners at JFK, one of the biggest airports in the country.
"The supervisors are not happy," one screener told The New York Post. "They're coming by double- and triple-checking us."
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
