SALT LAKE CITY — A major power outage at Los Angeles International Airport left hundreds of passengers stranded inside the airport, according to The Los Angeles Times.
More than 50 flights were canceled as a result of the outage. Some flights were also delayed due to the electrical issues.
The three-hour outage on Wednesday happened because of a “problem at an offsite substation,” CNBC reports.
Power was restored by 10:45 p.m. PT, according to CNBC.
LAX UPDATE: In order to maintain the sterility of the departure concourse, @SouthwestAir will hold passengers on arriving flights until the re-screening resumes in Terminal 1. We thank you for your patience. #LAXalert
— LAX Airport (@flyLAXairport) June 6, 2019
As a result, Southwest Airlines stopped flights to and from LAX on Thursday through 8 a.m. PT. The airline told CNBC that it canceled about 40 flights on Wednesday night. An additional 11 flights were canceled on Thursday.
United Airlines canceled four flights and diverted 11 more.
The Transportation Security Administration conducted a security sweep after the outage, and all passengers were asked to be rescreened, according to CBS Los Angeles.
”An airline granted passengers whose flights were cancelled access to their checked bags, resulting in the unintentional introduction of prohibited items into the secure area of the airport,” the TSA said. “Out of an abundance of caution, TSA leadership at LAX made the decision to re-screen the passengers.”
Videos of passengers being rescreened were posted to social media.
THE LAX EVACUATION IS OVER!
— James Santelli resigned from KDKA (@JamesSantelli) June 6, 2019
Passengers are being allowed back into Terminal 1 to be re-screened. @CBSLA pic.twitter.com/fucMlbMfFS
The nightmare continues. Terminal 1 at LAX is being evacuated, passengers being re-screened. Officials says they’re being extra cautious after last night’s power outage. @CBSLA pic.twitter.com/tuvzz5fwra
— Tina Patel (@tina_patel) June 6, 2019
Passengers told CBS Los Angeles that they arrived to their flights earlier but were surprised to see their terminals dark because of the electrical outage.
“We were just following the crowd. We followed two to the other terminals and they told us they didn’t know what they could do for us. So we had to come back here,” said Kath Osorio, a traveler.