Elderly Woman's Oxygen Tanks Prompt SFO Bomb Scare, Evacuation

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) - Oxygen tanks in an elderly woman's bag caused a scare that led to a partial shutdown of a terminal at San Francisco International Airport Friday and delayed several flights.

Security screeners at boarding area C in Terminal 1 saw two metal cylinders with wires attached during an X-ray scan of the woman's bag, according to SFO spokesman Mike McCarron.

McCarron said the woman told screeners she didn't know what was in the bag because she hadn't packed it herself.

The security checkpoint for Delta Airlines flights was closed off around 11:30 a.m. Friday, and a bomb squad was called to the scene.

The checkpoint was reopened when it was determined the tanks posed no danger. McCarron said the woman was allowed to continue on her travels.

A Delta spokesman said the shutdown delayed six flights, affecting approximately 1,200 departing passengers.

McCarron did point out that it was typically a "slower" time of the day at the airport, and passengers were being routed to other gates and checkpoints.

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