Bomb Scare @ Dublin Airport

sdanseo

Traffic wrote:

controlled explosion just taken place

source?

Oriel

Weathercheck wrote:

My sisters were flying out this morning.. I hope they got out.
I cant get through to their mobiles so thats a good sign;)

http://www.dublinairport.com/flight-information/live-departures.asp

dahooligan

Whats happening now? Everyone ok?

Archeron

dahooligan wrote:

Whats happening now? Everyone ok?

Still telling planes to keep passengers on board. Doesnt sound like anything too bad is happening though. Thank God.

sdanseo

Dublin Airport Statement Update - 09:42am 07/07/06


The building remains closed the incident is ongoing.

Dublin Airport and the airlines have agreed a plan to resume orderly operations when the airport re-opens.

All security staff will re-enter the building first followed by operating airport and airline staff next.

Passengers who already have boarding cards will be asked to re-enter next, then those passengers who have tickets to travel today will re-enter.

Passengers with confirmed travel arrangements today only will be permitted to enter the terminal building today.

Further information to follow shortly.

Announcements will be made through public address systems to passengers and staff at the rendezvous areas and we would be grateful if you could get this message out through the airwaves.

Thank you.

source: www.dublinairport.com

Oriel

Everyone will be fine. It's just going to disrupt arrivals and departures or the rest of the day. I can't see the airport opening again to this evening.

Dave!

Was an actual threat made or did they just see a package unattended, checked the cameras, and it looked suspicious? Do ye suppose it's just a case of being cautious because of (a) the previous threat, and (b) the fact that it's a year on from the London bombing?

sdanseo

I can't see the airport opening again to this evening.

Theyre not going to hold people on planes all day. The only thing that will keep the airport closed much longer is if the army is required to blow up half the arrivals hall to destroy the suspect package.

Do ye suppose it's just a case of being cautious because of (a) the previous threat, and (b) the fact that it's a year on from the London bombing?

Yeah, I think youve hit the nal on the head. Back to the ''better safe than sorry'' debate...

dahooligan

Are we sure the controlled explosion has taken place? Has it all gone according to plan?

How do you know this stuff?

TCamen

I'm sposda fly home to Dublin from London tonight -- never even occurred to me when I booked my flights to avoid 07/07 cos of the London bombs, and now delays @ Dublin airport *sigh*

I'm sposda arrive @ 9pm -- anyone wanna hazard a guess as to 'actual' arrival time after all this??

Damomanye

Security Alert lifted

http://www.breakingnews.ie/2006/07/07/story266706.html

sdanseo

TCamen wrote:

I'm sposda fly home to Dublin from London tonight -- never even occurred to me when I booked my flights to avoid 07/07 cos of the London bombs, and now delays @ Dublin airport *sigh*

I'm sposda arrive @ 9pm -- anyone wanna hazard a guess as to 'actual' arrival time after all this??

To Heathrow with Aer Lingus>>>Late Tonight Hopefully

To Stansted with Ryanair>>>Gawd knows

Excuse the going a bit OT, but atc are mentioning ''activity near blessinton''. Anyone know whats going on down there today? The K club is near there but not Blessington surely..?

irlrobins

Could be a load of helis landing at K Club for European Open. Baldonnel is busy also it seems.

Was in CDG two years ago when there was a suspect package found. They didn't clear the whole terminal, just a section near where the bag was. Police arrived took bag away, 5 mins later a bang from outside as they blew it up. Everyone let back into the section 5 mins later. Efficient!

Bluetonic

sdonn_1 wrote:

Excuse the going a bit OT, but atc are mentioning ''activity near blessinton''. Anyone know whats going on down there today?

Kilrush Airport helicopter and light aircraft movements.

d-redser

Any news on the roads around the airport?? Are they open yet?

kdouglas

from aaroadwatch.ie

www.aaroadwatch.ie wrote:

DUBLIN:Following a security alert at Dublin Airport pedestrians and all other traffic are allowed into the Airport again. Only passengers with tickets are allowed onto the Departures level. But those greeting ariving passengers are allowed access to the Arrivals area. There will be disruption to flights going out for most of the day. Those flying out later should check with their individual Airlines. All restrictions have been lifted, but traffic is very slow on the approaches to the Airport, particularly on the Old Swords Road.

KazDub

A rucksack was left outside the toilets on the arrivals floor with a Koran on top of it. Sniffer dogs were used to confirm that it was a 'positive', for what I don't know, but I'd imagine it was explosives of some sort.
It was taken away and detonated.

Edited to appease the grammar police. Don't want to end up on the wrong side of them. They might whack me with their dictionaries!

Blowfish

KazDub wrote:

A rucksack was left outside the toilets on the arrivals floor with a Quoran on top of it. Sniffer dogs were used to confirm that it was a 'positive', for what I don't know, but I'd imagine it was explosives of some sort.
It was taken away and detonated.

So the person could have been in the toilets.

markpb

Blowfish wrote:

So the person could have been in the toilets.

Tough. Everyone knows you don't leave bags unattended in any airport.

Besides, as the previous poster said, they checked the bags with sniffer dogs first so presumably they found (or suspected) something.

copacetic

KazDub wrote:

A rucksack was left outside the toilets on the arrivals floor with a Quoran on top of it. Sniffer dogs were used to confirm that it was a 'positive', for what I don't know, but I'd imagine it was explosives of some sort.
It was taken away and detonated.

presuming you mean Koran? or is my spelling wrong? where did you here that, didn't hear that on the news..

Blowfish

markpb wrote:

Tough. Everyone knows you don't leave bags unattended in any airport.

Besides, as the previous poster said, they checked the bags with sniffer dogs first so presumably they found (or suspected) something.

Yeah, but what I meant was that if it did contain proper explosives, the airport may not have been the target, they may have planned on trying to get it onto an airplane

KazDub

daveym wrote:

presuming you mean Koran? or is my spelling wrong? where did you here that, didn't hear that on the news..

Yes, 'Koran' then.
I heard it from someone in the airport authority.

therecklessone

RTE

Delays to flights at Dublin Airport are expected for the rest of the day following a security alert at its main arrivals terminal this morning.

The terminal was evacuated at around 8am and all outgoing flights were grounded.

It reopened to passengers and airport staff two hours later.

An army bomb disposal team carried out a controlled explosion on a suspicious piece of baggage.

It was established that the bag contained a copy of the Koran and medicines.

The evacuation is the second security alert at the airport this week and follows an evacuation of the main terminal on Tuesday.

BuffyBot

There was Quorn on top of it? Damn militant vegetarians!

Dave!

Blowfish wrote:

So the person could have been in the toilets.

I don't imagine they just saw the rucksack and decided to evacuate... Most likely they checked the security cameras to see who left it there and how long ago. I'm just speculating though..

dbnavan

Today FM said their was a copy of the Koran ontop of the bag

Dave!

Yeah that was already mentioned in the thread

dbnavan

DaveMcG wrote:

If there's gonna be a controlled explosion, then does that mean that the package actually was a bomb? Or are they just using their own explosives on it to be sure?

A controlled explosion can be carried out on anything, doesnt have to be a bomb


from everything2.com

In the news, you will quite frequently hear about a "controlled explosion", especially in connection with "suspicious packages" and other fears of terrorism. However, it is only very rarely explained what one of those controlled explosions actually does, nor how it is planned or executed.

The first port of call for the police or army bomb squad is to see if they can defuse the bomb. This is often done by a remote-controlled robot, who will try to remove or disconnect either the ignition system (this might be a primer charge such as a blast cap) or the timing / remote control device. The remote-controlled robot can have a series of cameras (infra-red, colour, etc), sensors (geiger-counters, swab sensors etc, to find out what the explosive device consists of) and remote-controllable tools etc.

If the defusing succeeds, the device might still be dangerous, in case the terrorists have installed secondary detonation devices, such as movement sensors etc. If the defusing fails, even more danger is present. In both cases, the bomb experts will want to conduct a controlled explosion.

"Controlled explosions" is not actually an overly precise term, as explosions can be extremely difficult to control, because they - well... they explode. The "controlled" part, then, describes the act of controlling one or more aspects of an impending explosion.

One of the aspects that can be controlled is the timing. Some of the remote controlled robots can be fitted with a shotgun, and shooting at the explosive device is a form of controlled explosion. Especially when dealing with high-explosives, shooting at the actual detonation mechanism might actually disrupt the explosive device, meaning that while the primer charge might go off, the main (and most dangerous charge) might not go off. The "controlled" element of this type of explosion is the timing: Because the bombs squad know when they are planning to shoot the device, they can make sure that all civilians are out of the area at the time of the potential explosion, which would minimise casualties.

Another aspect that can be controlled in some cases, is location. If the bomb is suspected to be inside a van parked next to a structural pillar of a large building, for example, they can move the actual van away from the hot-spot which would cause the most damage. If the bomb is in a bag or hold-all, using a remote-controlled robot to move the bag away from a high-risk area (such as in the basement of a building) into a lower-risk area.

In other cases, a controlled explosion can be done by putting a second explosive device next to the suspected bomb. The bomb squad can then place a heavy, damping material around the area, and set off the secondary device. The hope is that the secondary device will either disable the main bomb without setting it off, or set it off, and hope that the explosion will do only minimal damage.

In a final scenario, a heavy metal shield can be used to deflect the explosive force away from sensitive areas.

Often, bomb squads will use a combination of two or more of the techniques above. If a controlled explosion has to be used, damage is unavoidable, but the idea is to limit the damage and eliminate the loss of life as far as possible

kdouglas

personally i dont see why everyone is hanging on the fact that there was a copy of the koran in/on the bag, its almost as if someone saw a bag, saw the koran and thought, "oh ****, its terrorists"

if it had been a normal bag and no mention of the koran would it have been treated as suspicious so quickly?

Morpheus

From what i heard, a call was made to gardai telling them that a device had been left on the floor of the departures area of the terminal. It was under a strairs or escalator, this was apositive terrorist code red situation for the airport.

they began to be evacuated shortly before 8 and the amry bomb disposal unit carried out the controlled explosion on the device. it has been confirmed that it contained medicines (could be drugs which may explain the sniffer dogs positive reaction) and a copy of the Koran.

The airport has now been cleared. Not a good week for Dublin International eh?

This could be an attempt to guage airport security by subversives for a possible future attack or to just cause chaos for some nutters enjoyment.

Lets hope its the latter and that (s)he's caught soon.

egan007

Good operating security procedures should blow up any Holy Books.
It makes sence - A Holy Book could do alot of damage.
If i was walking down the street and see the Koran I'd run for my life .

Dave!

kdouglas wrote:

personally i dont see why everyone is hanging on the fact that there was a copy of the koran in/on the bag, its almost as if someone saw a bag, saw the koran and thought, "oh ****, its terrorists"

if it had been a normal bag and no mention of the koran would it have been treated as suspicious so quickly?

Well on the anniversary of the London bombings, a bag left unattended in an unusual place (not under a chair or anything, like where you might forget it) for a long time, with a Koran conspicuously placed on top of it..... I can understand why someone might think it suspicious. However I don't think I would have thought much of it had I noticed it.

egan007

Morph&#233 wrote: »

This could be an attempt to guage airport security by subversives for a possible future attack or to just cause chaos for some nutters enjoyment.

.

*insert Giant rolleyes*

dbnavan

kdouglas wrote:

personally i dont see why everyone is hanging on the fact that there was a copy of the koran in/on the bag, its almost as if someone saw a bag, saw the koran and thought, "oh ****, its terrorists"

if it had been a normal bag and no mention of the koran would it have been treated as suspicious so quickly?

yes it would all airports treat all unattended bags as suspicious. However with the main threat coming from the middle east, it would be extra suspicious

egan007

dbnavan wrote:

yes it would all airports treat all unattended bags as suspicious. However with the main threat coming from the middle east, it would be extra suspicious

Oh FFS!
The Koran is not only available in the middle east or does not imply anything like it unless you are glued to Sky news every day.

Maybe some guy decided to read the Koran so he could form his own opinions and went to take a piss...

dbnavan

egan007 wrote:

Oh FFS!
The Koran is not only available in the middle east or does not imply anything like it unless you are glued to Sky news every day.

Maybe some guy decided to read the Koran so he could form his own opinions and went to take a piss...

ALL unattended bags are disposed of go to the airport and u will hear warnings every couple of minutes on the tanoy system

egan007

dbnavan wrote:

ALL unattended bags are disposed of go to the airport and u will hear warnings every couple of minutes on the tanoy system

Sure - they are 'disposed of' they don't call the bomb squad and evacuate the airport.

dbnavan

egan007 wrote:

Sure - they are 'disposed of' they don't call the bomb squad and evacuate the airport.

What do you think they do.....throw it out the back in a big wheelie bin?

Morpheus

egan007 wrote:

Sure - they are 'disposed of' they don't call the bomb squad and evacuate the airport.

The authorities recieved a call, saying that a bomb had been left on the floor. thats why the bomb squad was called.

whens the last time you saw a backpack abandoned on the airport floor with a copy of the new testament sitting on top of it?

Dave!

Morph&#233 wrote: »

whens the last time you saw a backpack abandoned on the airport floor with a copy of the new testament sitting on top of it?

Indeed. I think he's just trying to be politically correct

egan007

Morph&#233 wrote: »

The authorities recieved a call, saying that a bomb had been left on the floor. thats why the bomb squad was called.

whens the last time you saw a backpack abandoned on the airport floor with a copy of the new testament sitting on top of it?

*insert Giant rolleyes*

*Insert pump*

*increase rolleyes size....*

I'm leaving, off to try and remember the last time i "saw a backpack abandoned on the airport floor with a copy of the new testament sitting on top of it" :rolleyes:

I don't know why i get involved in moronic dribble.

Dave!

egan007 wrote:

*insert Giant rolleyes*

*Insert pump*

*increase rolleyes size....*

I'm leaving, off to try and remember the last time i "saw a backpack abandoned on the airport floor with a copy of the new testament sitting on top of it" :rolleyes:

I don't know why i get involved in moronic dribble.

Here, you can use this in future when you don't actually want to engage in discussion:

http://tinypic.com/f3cas7.gif

Just tryin to help!

Archeron

egan007 wrote:

Oh FFS!
The Koran is not only available in the middle east or does not imply anything like it unless you are glued to Sky news every day.

Maybe some guy decided to read the Koran so he could form his own opinions and went to take a piss...

and came back to find his big bag of airport toblerones had just been blown up.

kdouglas

ok, given that the bag was in a suspicious location it sounds more reasonable, but previously id heard that it was outside the toilets or some such, under an escalator is a bit more suspicious

BuffyBot

Isn't their some toilets whose entrance happens to be under the escalators on one of the levels?

Trotter

From RTE.ie

"Airport alert 'not sinister', say gardaí

07 July 2006 15:40

Gardaí say they are 'absolutely satisfied' there was no sinister motive behind the discovery of a bag at Dublin Airport which led to this morning's security alert.

They say the bag was inadvertently left behind by a passenger departing on a flight from the airport.

They say they have traced the owner and are satisfied that there was no subversive involvement.

Earlier, an army bomb disposal team carried out a controlled explosion on the bag that had been left in the arrivals hall.

The security alert resulted in flight delays and traffic congestion in the vicinity of the airport.

60 flights and around 12,000 passengers were affected.

The delays are expected to continue for the rest of the day.

The terminal was evacuated at around 8am and all outgoing flights were grounded.

It reopened to passengers and airport staff two hours later.

It was established that the bag contained a copy of the Koran and medicines.

The evacuation is the second security alert at the airport this week and follows an evacuation of the main terminal on Tuesday."

Cmar-Ireland

Wishbone Ash wrote:

PM sent

I would be interested in hearing that channel too.....!!!

Cheers

scop

Youd want to be a true insane PC nazi to assume the Koran on top of an unattended bag isnt dodgy. Welcome to the real with which includes Islamic terrorism.

Julesie

egan007 wrote:

Oh FFS!
The Koran is not only available in the middle east or does not imply anything like it unless you are glued to Sky news every day.

Maybe some guy decided to read the Koran so he could form his own opinions and went to take a piss...

If we are to believe the reports (big if) and the bag was abandoned with a copy of the Koran placed on top of it then the authorities were right to be bloody suspicious. Of course not every muslim or Koran owner is a terrorist and no one is suggesting that that is the case but today being the 1 year anniversary of the london bombings would mean security was on high alert and anything that looked suspicious especially combined with a potentially symbolic Islamic item had to be investigated. And to be honest i wouldnt want it any other way. Certainly better to be safe rather than sorry.

Victor

Actually, leaving a Koran with a bomb would be very un-Islamic...


...but cunning.