Suspicious Package Prompts Evacuation At Austin Airport

AUSTIN, TX — Austin police cleared the lower level of the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport early Wednesday afternoon after a suspicious package prompted an evacuation.

The Austin American-Statesman reports that travelers have been allowed back into the area after the suspicious package was deemed benign. Police have not said what ultimately was found inside the package before giving the all-clear at around 1 p.m. on Wednesday.

Alarms were raised earlier following reports of a suspicious package, prompting police to send in the bomb squad to investigate. A spokesman told news outlets the lower level baggage claim area of the airport was evacuated in an abundance of caution while the package was studied. Travelers were still allowed on the upper level of the airport during the investigation, the newspaper reported.

It's unclear how many people were evacuated during the police operation coming the day after the Fourth of July in one of the year's busiest traveling days.

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