Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport in 2013.Michelle Siu/The Canadian Press
Toronto’s downtown airport reopened on Sunday and flights resumed after a suspicious package found near the ferry terminal the day before prompted authorities to suspend all operations, divert planes to nearby airports and evacuate the area.
Police said two people who were detained after a “potential explosive device” was found on a bike parked near the ferry terminal of Billy Bishop Airport have been released and no charges were laid. Police said they were confident this was an isolated incident and there was no further risk to public safety.
“Officers conducted a controlled detonation of the device, and the area was made safe,” they said in a statement on Sunday.
Police said they were called to the airport at 3:49 p.m. on Saturday and their emergency disposal unit was dispatched to the scene. Street cars in the area were rerouted during the investigation and several roads were closed. Two nearby residential buildings were also evacuated, and two Air Canada flights were diverted to Hamilton International Airport.
Later in the day, police announced two “persons of interest” had been detained and that they were co-operating with the investigation.
Police did not say what was contained in the package, or whether the package was considered dangerous.
Sydney Hutchins, of Sudbury, Ont., said her flight from Quebec City landed at Billy Bishop at around 4:10 p.m., on Saturday, when a flight attendant told passengers they would have to stay put while police investigated a suspicious package.
At around 5:20 p.m., she said she saw a SWAT team and police officers go up to the second floor of the airport, and passengers were ushered downstairs. Some time later, she said she saw police take someone away in handcuffs.
“Before seeing them everyone figured everything was just fine, and we were all just more in a hurry to get home,” she said of police. “But actually after seeing them come in, it was a little bit concerning.”
Jean Yoon, who plays family matriarch Umma on Kim’s Convenience, tweeted that she, too, was stuck at Billy Bishop. In a series of tweets, the actor said the water taxis were taking 10 people at a time and were going to try bussing travellers to other access points within the airport.
Bob Richardson, whose flight had just touched down at the airport from Ottawa at around 4 p.m., said he was sitting with other would-be passengers at the main terminal when he was told he would not be allowed to leave.
“They just blocked people from going down the tunnel,” he said. “These things happen, and usually they are false, but it’s good that there are people there to protect you.”
Ross McLean, a security specialist and former Toronto police officer, said there are a number of reasons police would have taken such drastic measures to secure the area. Packages found in a high-risk location such as underneath a control tower, or additional information such as threats or suspicious phone calls, would be cause for police to take extra precautions.
Police would have also heightened security if an important person, such as a politician, was passing through the airport that day, he said, adding that markings on the packages could have indicated they were dealing with a more serious explosive or high-level detonator.
”They were probably preparing for what they felt was the most obvious worst-case scenario,” Mr. McLean said.
With a report from The Canadian Press.