Story highlights Sweeps of the building found no elevated readings, fire officials say

Traveler: "We all just ran. Nobody knew what was going on"

(CNN) London City Airport was declared safe Friday after reports of a "chemical incident" spurred an evacuation, fire officials said.

"Two complete sweeps of the airport building were carried out jointly by firefighters and police officers both wearing protective equipment," the London Fire Brigade said in a statement. "No elevated readings were found and the building was ventilated, searched and declared safe."

Authorities believe the incident might have been caused by a CS gas spray -- a type of tear gas -- but are still investigating. "Whilst the cause of the incident has not yet been confirmed, officers are investigating if it was the result of an accidental discharge of this canister," a statement says.

Passengers wear emergency blankets to keep warm outside the terminal.

"At this early stage officers are investigating whether it may have been discarded by a passenger prior to check-in. There have been no arrests and enquiries continue."

The airport was evacuated after a number of passengers reported feeling unwell, police said.

Read More</s>Dozens of passengers were treated for breathing difficulties after a suspected chemical incident at London City Airport on Friday night. Two casualties were taken to hospital and 25 were treated at the scene, London Ambulance Service (LAS) said.

A spokesman for London Fire Brigade (LFB) said it was called to the airport at 4.11pm to “reports of a chemical incident”. About 500 members of the public and airport staff were evacuated. Passengers described the situation as “quite scary”, with airport staff jumping over check-in desks to escape.

The airport was reopened shortly after being declared safe at around 7pm. Passengers were warned that further disruption to flights was expected.

An LFB spokesman said “two complete sweeps of the airport building” were carried out jointly by firefighters and police officers wearing protective equipment. He added: “No elevated readings were found and the building was ventilated, searched and declared safe.”

Medics trained to treat people in hazardous situations also attended the scene. LAS assistant director of operations Paul Gibson said: “All patients were treated for minor breathing difficulties and two were taken to hospital.”

The ambulance service posted a message on Twitter saying they were “very busy” due to the airport incident and urged people to “only call us in a genuine emergency”.

David Morris, who was one of the passengers caught up in the incident, said he was at the check-in desk for his British Airways (BA) flight to Edinburgh when people started coughing.

“We were queuing up and we were just about to check our bags in, and I was talking and started to cough to the point I was not able to keep talking,” the 28-year-old told PA. “It was getting quite bad and we saw other people starting to cough at the same time. The people behind the desk were coughing the most and quite aggressively.

“Within two minutes, they shouted for everyone to get out.” Mr Morris said BA staff behind the check-in desk jumped over to escape, calling the situation “quite scary”. He said that whatever was causing people to cough did not smell or have any colour to it. “Everyone was shouting and rushing towards the door,” he added. Once outside, he said those who had been coughing, between 15 and 20 people, were sectioned off and checked over by paramedics.

The closure of the airport led to travel chaos as all flights were suspended. Several incoming planes from destinations such as Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Belfast City and Paris were diverted to other airports.

A group of Scottish MPs were among the travellers left standing on the airport’s tarmac for more than 90 minutes before being allowed back into the terminal building.

SNP MP Calum Kerr, who was unhappy after a proposed Bill for an automatic pardon for gay men convicted of now-abolished sexual offences was not put to a vote in the House of Commons, said: “This is just the perfect end to a day when we’ve seen democracy let us down and now the transport system has let us down.

“News agencies were reporting a chemical incident, which obviously changed the atmosphere a bit. People are less fraught. It goes from being a pain in the derriere to a case of: ‘Is everybody safe? I hope people are okay’.”

Ross Edgar (28) from Glasgow said he heard an alarm going off at around 4.15pm, resulting in everyone being evacuated from the building. Large queues comprised of hundreds of people, hoping to get into the airport, could be seen making their way around the entrance of the terminal once it had been declared safe.

Airport staff using megaphones informed those waiting of the flights which were cancelled and those which may take off. At least 11 flights were listed as cancelled. Inside the terminal the waiting ensued, as the check-in area continued to heave with people eager to reach their destination. A nearby Travelodge also took the brunt of the chaos, with queues out of the door as those left stranded by the incident tried to find somewhere to stay.</s>London City Airport has been evacuated after reports of a “chemical incident”, London Fire Brigade said.

A total of 26 people were treated at the airport after suffering from breathing difficulties and two were taken to hospital, the London Ambulance Service said.

The alarm was raised at 4.11pm on Friday and some 500 members of the public and staff were evacuated from the airport.

The fire brigade said the cause of the incident was not yet known.

“Three fire engines and a range of specialist appliances have been called to reports of a chemical incident at London City Airport this afternoon,” a fire brigade spokesman said.

“Around 500 members of the public and staff have been evacuated and there are reports of a number of passengers feeling unwell.”

All flights were suspended and several incoming planes from destinations such as Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Belfast City and Paris were diverted to other airports.</s>"Two complete sweeps of the airport building were carried out jointly by firefighters and police officers both wearing protective equipment," the London Fire Brigade said in a statement. "No elevated readings were found and the building was ventilated, searched and declared safe."

The airport was evacuated after a number of passengers reported feeling unwell, police said.

Firefighters received reports of the chemical incident about 4 p.m. (11 a.m. ET), the brigade said. By 7:25 p.m., the airport had reopened.

Officials haven't said what caused the incident.

The city's ambulance service said it had treated 27 patients at the scene for difficulty breathing. Two were taken to the hospital, the service said. Alistair Snowie, who spoke to CNN on the phone from a medical tent where he was being treated, said he was waiting in line to check in for his flight home to Stirling, Scotland, when everyone started coughing. "It all happened very quickly," he said. "The alarm didn't go off at first, but we all just ran. Nobody knew what was going on." Hours later, Snowie said he was still wondering what made him start coughing. Airport has now reopened. We thank passengers for their patience, access to terminal will be staggered & disruption to flights expected. — London City Airport (@LondonCityAir) October 21, 2016 "We still don't know what we breathed in," he said. "Don't feel too great." London City Airport focuses on business travelers heading to destinations in the UK, Europe and the United States. It's in east London. London City Airport is the closest airport to central London. Far smaller than Heathrow and Gatwick, the major airports in London, the airport serves more than 40 destinations, according to its Facebook page Evacuated passengers shared stories of frustration and concern on social media. Milly Blunt posted photos of passengers waiting outside. The evacuation, she said, canceled her flight home to visit family in Edinburgh, Scotland. Boxer David Haye said he wouldn't be able to make it to a fight in Scotland. Gutted cant get to Scotland for @JoshTaylorBoxer fight tonight. As #CityAirport got evacuated when everyone started coughing uncontrollably! — David Haye (@mrdavidhaye) October 21, 2016 "City Airport got evacuated when everyone started coughing uncontrollably," he said on Twitter.</s>"Terminal has been evacuated due to fire alarm. We are looking into the cause," the airport said on Twitter.

London fire brigade said about 500 people had been evacuated from the airport's terminal.

"Three fire engines and a range of specialist appliances have been called to reports of a chemical incident at London City Airport this afternoon," it said in a statement.

London Ambulance said it had treated 26 people at the airport for breathing difficulties and had taken two to hospital.

A spokeswoman for London's Metropolitan Police said officers had been called to the airport at around 1500 GMT to reports of several passengers having been taken unwell. "The cause is not known," she added.

The airport, a few miles east of the Canary Wharf financial district, mostly serves short-haul, European destinations.</s>HUNDREDS of travellers have been forced to flee London City Airport after a fire alert this afternoon.

Hordes of passengers have been told to evacuate the airport , at Royal Docks, following a fire alarm just before 4.15pm today.

Numerous passengers, who were due to board flights, are still stranded on the runway.

Emergency fires services at reportedly at the scene.

A spokesman for City Airport confirmed that the terminal had been evacuated after a fire was reported but said it was too early to establish a cause.

He said: “The terminal was evacuated after a fire alert was raised in line with normal procedure.”

Frank Egan, 48, an IT worker from Glasgow, had been due to fly from London City back to Glasgow at around 4pm today.

He said: "I've been stranded for more than 55 minutes. "Myself and other passengers are still standing out on the tarmac. "They keep saying it is a routine fire but it seems like an unusual length of time to keep us waiting around it it's just routine."

Passengers have since taken to Twitter detailing their confusion at today’s events.

Teen arrested under Terrorism Act after suspicious device discovered on London tube train

Whilst Chris Daly wrote: “London City Airport’s on fire apparently. All evacuated to the tarmac.”

LorcanJPT ‏London City Airport has been evacuated due to a fire #London

A spokeswoman for London Fire Brigade said three fire engines had been sent to the scene.</s>Police investigating the suspected chemical incident which led to the evacuation of London City Airport have discovered what is “believed to be a CS gas spray”, a spokesman said.

The find came after police and firefighters scoured the airport following the alert, which saw dozens of passengers treated for breathing difficulties.

The airport spokesman said it was unclear what had caused the chemical incident, but officers were “investigating whether it was the result of an accidental discharge of the spray”.

The Metropolitan Police said it was investigating whether the CS gas had been “discarded by a passenger prior to check-in”.

Two casualties were taken to hospital and 25 were treated at the scene, London ambulance service (LAS) said.

A spokesman for London fire brigade (LFB) said it was called to the airport at 4.11pm to “reports of a chemical incident”.

A subsequent “full evacuation of the airport terminal” saw about 500 members of the public and airport staff forced to leave.

The airport, which reopened after being declared safe at about 7pm, was said to have closed after an alarm was activated.

Passengers described the situation as “quite scary”, with airport staff jumping over check-in desks to escape.

An LFB spokesman said that “two complete sweeps of the airport building” were carried out jointly by firefighters and police officers wearing protective equipment.

“No elevated readings were found and the building was ventilated, searched and declared safe.”

Medics trained to treat people in hazardous situations also attended the scene.

LAS assistant director of operations Paul Gibson said: “All patients were treated for minor breathing difficulties and two were taken to hospital.”

David Morris, who was one of the passengers caught up in the incident, said he was at the check-in desk for his British Airways (BA) flight to Edinburgh when people started coughing.

“We were queuing up and we were just about to check our bags in, and I was talking and started to cough to the point I was not able to keep talking,” the 28-year-old told the Press Association.

“It was getting quite bad and we saw other people starting to cough at the same time. The people behind the desk were coughing the most and quite aggressively.

“Within two minutes, they shouted for everyone to get out.”

Mr Morris said BA staff behind the check-in desk jumped over to escape, calling the situation “quite scary”.

He said that whatever was causing people to cough did not smell or have any colour to it.

Once outside, he said those who had been coughing were sectioned off and checked over by paramedics.

The closure of the airport led to travel chaos as all flights were suspended.

Several incoming planes from destinations such as Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Belfast and Paris were diverted to other airports.

An airport spokesman said: “We apologise to passengers for the inconvenience caused today when an alarm was activated, triggering a full evacuation of the airport terminal.

“Passengers were evacuated safely and we thank them for their patience.

“Following the evacuation, some individuals reported feeling unwell and were treated at the scene by London Ambulance Service.

“Emergency services responded to the evacuation, citing a possible chemical incident, with firefighters and police officers jointly conducting sweeps of the airport building.

“The search of the airport led to the discovery of what is believed to be a CS gas spray.

“Whilst the cause of the incident has yet to be confirmed, officers are investigating whether it was the result of an accidental discharge of the spray.

“The airport was declared safe and reopened at approximately 7pm. Passengers are advised to contact their airline for the latest information regarding their flights.”</s>London City Airport has been evacuated after fire alarms in the terminal was activated.

Passengers and crew members were forced to get out of the airport at Royal Docks after the alarms sounded just before 4.15pm.

Pictures posted on social media showed crowds stranded on the runway as officials worked to identify the cause.

Some Twitter users speculated that a fire had broken out.

Chris Daly said: “London City Airport’s on fire apparently. All evacuated to the tarmac.”

Another customer said on Instagram: “Fire alarm at London City Airport. Bit surreal!”

A spokesman for London City Airport told the Evening Standard that the terminal had been evacuated after a fire was reported.

He said: “The terminal was evacuated after a fire alert was raised in line with normal procedure.

“It is too early to establish a cause.”

Keep up to date with all our articles on Facebook</s>Two people have been taken to hospital and dozens treated at London City Airport after reports of a “chemical incident”.

Only a day after a suspect package halted the Jubilee line at North Greenwich, the Docklands airport was evacuated this afternoon (Friday) at around 4.30pm and 26 people treated for breathing difficulties. Two were suffering so severely they had to be taken to hospital.

The alert came when people were ordered out of the main terminal building and on to the runway in the middle of the Royal Docks. Hundreds were evacuated, including staff, as people reported feeling unwell.

Flights were stopped for much of the afternoon and incoming flights were diverted to other destinations. The airport was finally declared safe at around 7.30pm in the evening.

A London Fire Brigade spokesman said: “Two complete sweeps of the airport building were carried out jointly by firefighters and police officers both wearing protective equipment.

“No elevated readings were found and the building was ventilated, searched and declared safe.”

The cause of the incident is still being investigated.

The incident comes just 24 hours after North Greenwich Tube Station was closed following a “terror-related incident”. And Friday morning saw Stratford Station closed with people speculating there had been a stabbing. The cause was a fire alarm.

Security has been ramped up on London’s public transport network since with more officers, including armed police, on patrol at travel hubs and high visibility patrols.</s>Your luggage could follow you around the airport
Authorities evacuate London City Airport after a chemical incident, but, after some remediation, police later declare the airport safe.