Suspicious package prompts Heathrow terminal evacuation

A MAN was last night being questioned by police after a security alert forced the closure of part of Heathrow Airport.

About 2,000 people were evacuated from Terminal Two after a suspect package was found in the check-in area.

Police said they were looking into reports that a man had run up to a desk, dropped off a package and then fled.

A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said: “That is certainly a line of inquiry and CCTV is being checked.”

An airport source, who declined to be identified, said that a police swab test for explosives on the bag had showed positive, but that it was not a viable bomb.

A police spokeswoman declined to comment on whether explosive substances had been detected but said a man had been arrested under the Terrorism Act and was being questioned by officers.

Passengers faced delays in entering the building as staff called travellers through flight-by-flight, prioritising those flights leaving first.

As a result, queues built up at each of the entrances.

Dave Winship, travelling to Zimbabwe on a 7pm flight, said it looked unlikely that he would leave on time.

“What annoys me more than anything else is that there is no information,” he said.

“They’re relying on some poor bloke shouting down the queue. If I’m at the end how am I supposed to know when they are calling my flight?”

British Airports Authority said the terminal was evacuated as a precaution and had reopened at about 5pm.

An airport spokesman said: “After an initial investigation by the police, Terminal Two was reopened at approximately 17.00.

“During the time the terminal was closed, arriving passengers on Terminal Two airlines were disembarked with their luggage at Terminal One.

Police said the package had been found to be non-suspicious but refused to comment on its contents.