Anxiety Over Bomb Scare In Lagos
Wednesday, May 09, 2012Omoba
There was pandemonium at the arrival
wing of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos on Tuesday as
officials and security men sought to unravel the content of an abandoned bag
found at the busy airport.
PUNCH Newspaper had gathered reports that airport officials invited the
police anti-bomb squad to examine the bag after waiting, vainly, for hours for
the bag to be claimed. The incident started at about 7:30pm and lasted for
about an hour. Our correspondent gathered that the police, on arriving at
the scene, had ordered the evacuation of all travelers and airport workers from
the building.
The
order reportedly threw the gathering of passengers, airport workers and other
users of the facility into confusion. The confusion, according to an
eyewitness, deepened after the bag emitted a loud sound while the anti-bomb
policemen were trying to open it. On hearing the bang, those present at
the airport at the time reportedly took to their heels.
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However,
after it was opened by men of the anti bomb squad the bag was discovered to
contain the personal effects of a British Airways passenger. Hours after the
incident, British tabloid, the Daily Mail, reported that a blast tore through the
cargo section of the airport.
However,
a statement by the Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority,
Dr. H.O. Demuren, late last night, said the bag belonged to a British Airways
passenger named Salami A. Atolagbe-Aro. The stament titled, No
Bomb Blast at MMIA, reads,
“It was an abandoned carry-on baggage/handbag with a British Airways tag with
passenger name Salami A. Atolagbe-Aro that was discovered at E-Arr frontage
1948hrs.
“The
bag was thereafter diffused (sic) by three men from the Police Bomb Disposal
Unit at about 2058hrs. The contents of the bag were taken and (they) were
personal effects and are currently in the custody of the FAAN Aviation Security
Crime Investigation Bureau. “BA has confirmed that the passenger actually
arrived on their flight this evening. The bag was sighted by Avsec officers
unattended and the Police Bomb Disposal Unit personnel called in as standard
procedure. “They placed the bag under surveillance and went ahead to open it
and thus creating the sound. No bomb explosion.”
There
have been speculations that the fundamentalist Islamic sect, Boko Haram, could
attack Lagos as parts of its campaign of violence against the Federal
Government.
As
a result, the airport authorities have increased security at the local and
international airports.
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