Passengers were left trapped on a plane for more than two hours on Tuesday at Barcelona's El Prat Airport following reports of radioactive material leaking from a package of medical equipment on a flight, though its press office told Newsweek no radiation had escaped and there is "no risk."
The incident occurred in the hold of a Swiss International Airlines (SWISS) plane that had landed at the airport from Zurich. It was parked at stand 264 of Terminal 1, which was closed in response to reports of "low-intensity radioactive material."
Five airport workers were also transferred to hospital as a precaution, according to Spain's El Nacional newspaper.
Patricia Plaja, a spokesperson for the government of Catalonia, the Spanish region where the incident took place, told local media they were not aware of any "seriously affected people."
It was initially reported the incident involved radioactive material intended for cancer treatment, which originally came from Germany. However, authorities later confirmed no radiation leak had been detected.
Speaking to Newsweek, a Barcelona El Prat Airport press officer confirmed a radiation leak had been reported but said investigations found "no radiation" and there is "no risk" to either staff or the public. El Nacional reported that local firefighters as saying the general alarm was deactivated following radiation testing.
In a statement, a SWISS spokesperson said: "We can confirm that during the unloading of the cargo compartment of flight LX1952 in Barcelona, ground staff discovered that a box containing medical supplies showed damp patches.
"The flight was operated by an Air Baltic Airbus A220 with 134 passengers and 5 crew members on board. The aircraft has already been released and is on its way to Zurich. Further investigations are being carried out by the local authorities.
"We can confirm that no radioactivity was detected during the measurements by the responsible authorities. This procedure is a regular airport process in the event of damaged or, in this case, wet cargo with radioactive contents.
"There was no danger to passengers, crew or ground personnel at any time. The aircraft took off for Zurich with passengers shortly after 2pm."
El Prat Airport is managed by Aena, a company that owns a number of Spanish airports. Aena described Tuesday's incident as "minor" and confirmed no damage had been caused to any of the airport's infrastructure.
Earlier this week El Prat Airport activated an emergency plan after an unidentified drone entered an area used by aircraft for take-off and landing. Flights briefly stopped landing at the airport before the all-clear was given. Authorities are still investigating the incident.
Update 2/20/24, 9:29 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
James Bickerton is a Newsweek U.S. News reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is covering U.S. politics and world ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
