A traveler who tripped up security at LaGuardia airport with a homeopathic medical device yesterday was eventually allowed to proceed on to his destination, albeit without his mysterious New Age device. But long after he was gone, the device—which could possibly be mistaken for a crude pipe bomb—caused a bomb scare at the airport, because security screeners left the pipe behind after their shift change without telling the next team what it was.
After the passenger was cleared, the device was left in an abandoned property area without the full information, a TSA official tells us. When the next shift started, one officer noticed the items, and CNN reports that he "mistakenly believed they were test objects, used to check screener proficiency. When that officer later learned they were not test items, the officer alerted others, and the TSA contacted the Port Authority Police Department." They, in turn, called the NYPD bomb squad.
The device was finally removed from the airport at 5:30 p.m., some six hours after they were taken from the passenger. And the Post is having a field day with this, reporting that "TSA bozos at one point left the pipes — which eventually turned out to be harmless — resting on a radiator as hundreds of fliers passed through security nearby." One Port Authority police official tells the tabloid, "Six hours to report a potential bomb? It’s outrageous." But in a statement, the TSA insists the device was inspected merely "out of an abundance of caution." BOOORRRING! Flyin' Shame: TSA Bozos Bungle Bomb Boner In PA Blame Game is much more fun!