(FiveNation.com)- The Los Angeles International Airport lost all power last Wednesday afternoon, leaving it completely dark. According to airport officials, most terminals and the traffic lights in the terminal area were reportedly affected when the outage was first reported at 2:30 p.m.
TSA temporarily stopped screening passengers, which impacted some departing flights.
LAX Airport tweeted: for passengers to please allow more time because TSA has stopped screening travelers in most terminals due to a power problem. To restore all systems, crews are responding as quickly as possible.
The power outage affected most terminals, and crews are investigating the problem. The lack of power for jet bridges may impact some departing flights. As we learn more, kindly allow extra time and check the status of your flight.
Local ABC news reported that although the airfield carried on as usual, LAX officials warned that some departing flights might experience delays.
Just before 3:10 p.m., LAX’s official Twitter account tweeted that power had been largely restored and that passenger screening would resume in about 15 minutes.
Soon after, airport officials declared that power had been fully restored and everything had returned to normal.
The number of flights impacted was unknown since the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) had stopped screening passengers due to the lack of power.
Crews from the Department of Water and Power were present.
According to a tweet from LADWP, crews could make switches in the field to reroute power to LAX and restore service. LADWP claimed to be looking into the outage.
Reports show the elevators at LAX malfunctioned last November, trapping a number of passengers and employees.
A mylar balloon getting entangled in nearby power lines was given as the reason for the power outage. The balloons may short-circuit or even melt electrical wires if they come into contact with power lines. In Los Angeles, they contribute to about 200 power outages annually.
