Security Breach At Metro Airport Locks Hundreds Behind Checkpoint Gates

DETROIT (WWJ) - Travelers at the McNamara Terminal inside of Detroit Metro Airport were barricaded after a security breach at a checkpoint. Hundreds of travelers report seeing a barricade wall come down after hearing a loud signal.

Airport officials told WWJ the shutdown was due to an improper passenger screening.

Jane Bailey and her husband were in the terminal when the security breach happened and she says everyone there was concerned.

"People are a little antsy, they are waiting in anticipation of this barricade going up but no one is terribly irritated ... I think everyone is just curious about what the heck is going on," said Bailey.

Spokesman Michael Conway says the incident happened about 9 p.m. and triggered the locking of gates around the McNamara Terminal.

Conway says authorities found the man, took him into custody and don't believe he presents any further security risk.

Ryan Webb of West Bloomfield had just returned to Metro Airport, when the gates closed. He says there were hundreds of people confined to one area:

"I would say I easily saw several hundred people just waiting behind that gate, and the section that we're in, which is just in the main hub when you first get into McNamara Terminal where the water feature is ... I'm looking at - at least several hundred people," Webb told WWJ.

The lockdown lasted just under two hours.