United Flight Diverted After Bomb Threat in Airplane Bathroom, Passengers Say
The airline told PEOPLE that flight 1533 was routed to O'Hare after a "potential security concern"
Taylor Glascock/Bloomberg via Getty
A United Airlines airplane at O'Hare International Airport (stock photo)A United Airlines flight from Newark, New Jersey, to Los Angeles carrying 202 passengers was diverted to Chicago on Wednesday morning due to a "potential security concern," according to a statement provided to PEOPLE by United.
Several passengers on board Flight 1533 said the security concern was a bomb threat written in one of the plane's lavatories, but authorities did not immediately confirm the nature of the threat.
"United flight 1533 diverted to Chicago this morning due to a potential security concern," United's statement read. "The flight landed safely, was met by local law enforcement and departed for Los Angeles again earlier this afternoon."
"Early this morning, FBI-Chicago and local partners responded to an incident with an aircraft at O'Hare Airport. There is no indication that there is an imminent threat to public safety or the facility itself at this time," the FBI told PEOPLE in a separate statement.
"Someone allegedly went into the bathroom and made a bomb threat on the bathroom window and now we’ve made an emergency landing in Chicago," passenger Rashad Robinson posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
"On United 1533 this morning from Newark to LAX, emergency landing in Chicago after a bomb threat was found in the plane bathroom. We were told in air only that a situation forced the diversion. The threat was revealed to us when the plane was parked and police and fire trucks started closing in," posted journalist Ian O'Connor, who was also on the flight.
"As we were getting closer to Chicago, they were really adamant that everyone stay in their seats, like they were starting to shout at passengers if they started to get up. They said, 'we'll have authorities waiting to arrest you when we land," passenger Richard Fickling told ABC 7 Chicago.
The plane was taxied to a remote area of O'Hare, where it was surrounded by first responders and law enforcement.
An unnamed passenger told CBS 2 that the passengers were deplaned while their bags were checked. The outlet reported that a bomb-sniffing K-9 found one suspicious bag and a robot was deployed to move it away. Police questioned the passenger who checked that bag.
The FBI did not immediately say what the contents of the bag were or if anyone was taken into custody.
United told PEOPLE that the same flight and plane departed for Los Angeles later Wednesday afternoon.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!
Read the original article on People.
