SAN JOSE — Travelers evacuated a terminal at Mineta San Jose International Airport on Sunday morning in response to an apparently false fire alarm.
Airport officials said the alarm was triggered on the airport tarmac around 11:30 a.m., sounding an alarm in Terminal B and prompting travelers to briefly evacuate.
The alarm came from a station on the tarmac in an area not accessible to the general public, said airport spokeswoman Rosemary Barnes.
“We believe it was someone working on the tarmac,” Barnes said.
Barnes said firefighters investigated and found no evidence of fire. A tweet from the airport said that the “Initial finding is fire warning intentionally activated.”
“At this time, we have everyone back in the terminal and are focused on getting everything back to normal,” she said.
Barnes did not have an estimate on how many travelers “self-evacuated” upon hearing the alarm. She added that only Terminal B was affected, and that a fire door between the two terminals closed as a result of the false alarm.
Passengers in the Southwest terminal were startled by the alarm and an announcement over loudspeakers that there was an emergency and they needed to evacuate. With the security doors shut, some congregated by a stairwell exit but those who went in came back out, finding no egress.
People did not appear to be panicking, but were getting frustrated when police showed up. A sound was heard, like the door was being rammed open, and then people began to file out.
Barnes said one outbound Alaska Airlines flight was delayed by about 15 minutes because of the alarm, but other flights were not affected.
Less than a month ago, travelers in Terminal A were delayed after a security scare involving unsecured baggage prompted authorities to re-screen every passenger.
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