JOHANNESBURG, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Normalcy has returned to the OR Tambo International Airport following a passenger evacuation on Monday caused by a suspicious bag.
According to the official at the airport, sniffer dogs and police officers were called to investigate after a luggage was found unattended in the terminal section on the morning.
"The South African Police Service then took over the scene. As part of its safety mechanism, they are duty bound to evacuate the area around that unattended bag," Airport spokesperson Leigh Gunkel-Keuler said.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Katlego Mogale told the media that the SAPS's K9 and airport security K9 were called to the scene after the unattended bag.
"The dogs were deployed to ascertain whether there were explosives in the bag but the dogs reacted negatively. The bag was then opened under controlled detonation by the SAPS explosives unit," Mogale told News24.
"At this stage investigations are underway to confirm the contents of the bag. A few hours ago operations at the airport returned to normal," Mogale said.
