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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Tuesday, June 5, 2001

Bomb threat shuts down Maui airport

By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau

KAHULUI, Maui — A bomb threat shut down Kahului Airport for nearly five hours yesterday, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of travelers and the cancellation and delay of numerous flights across the state.

The airport, which was shut down about 9:30 a.m., was reopened about 2:15 p.m. after a sweep by bomb-sniffing dogs that turned up nothing.

More than 500 travelers were shuttled by bus at about 11 a.m. to a temporary shelter operated by American Red Cross volunteers at Ichiro "Iron'' Maehara Baseball Stadium.

A bomb threat was called in to the state Airports District Office at the Kahului Airport at 8:22 a.m., said Marilyn Kali, state Department of Transportation spokeswoman.

The decision to shut down the airport came at a meeting of officials of the Maui Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Federal Aviation Administration and the state Airports Division, Kali said.

The authorities summoned two of the DOT's bomb-sniffing dogs, which are based in Honolulu, and they didn't arrive until about 10:30 a.m.

Meanwhile, motorists were turned away from the airport at the intersection of Keolani Place and A'alele Street.

At the baseball stadium, hundreds of travelers sat in the stands, watching an empty field, while others stood at the entry or lounged on the grass outside the stadium at Maui County's War Memorial Complex.

Vannessa Smith of San Jose, Calif., was headed to Hawai'i for a weeklong vacation on O'ahu. But when her Sun Trips charter flight made its scheduled stop on Maui first, the Honolulu-bound passengers were told to get off the plane.

"I'm upset,'' Smith said. "I feel like I've wasted my day now.''

Doyle and Peggy Hinton of Angleton, Texas, said they were just about to board an Aloha Airlines flight to Kaua'i when they were told to evacuate.

"It puts a crimp in our day,'' Doyle Hinton said. "We had a full day planned. Now, we'll be lucky to get our car and check in at the hotel before dark.''

Ilen Lev of Israel said he was about to return to the Bay Area after spending five months on Maui. He said he couldn't understand why it was taking so long to clear the airport.

"In Israel, this happens so often, we're used to it. It's part of our lives. It's no big deal. But it never stops the airport for a half a day,'' Lev said.

The airlines took a substantial hit from the closure. Twenty-three Aloha Airline flights in and out of Maui were canceled or delayed, said Julie King, company spokesperson.

Hawaiian Airlines reported that 25 to 30 flights were affected by the closure, including flights to other islands that were delayed due to shortages of available aircraft.

In Honolulu, a Portland, Ore.-bound flight was delayed for an hour and 20 minutes to wait for connecting passengers from Maui, Hawaiian Airlines spokesman Keoni Wagner said.

"We've been doing a lot of juggling of both aircraft and crews,'' Wagner said. "It was a really frustrating day.''

The Maui County Council also announced the cancellation of yesterday's scheduled visit to Lana'i for committee site inspections and meetings.

Council Chairman Patrick Kawano said the trip was canceled because of the uncertainty of the airport closing and the clouded weather conditions on Lana'i.