The shooting alert at JFK Airport terror may have been sparked by people cheering for Usain Bolt at the Olympics

A terror scare at JFK airport in New York could have been caused by loud banging and cheering by people watching the Olympics, police said today.Thousands of passengers were evacuated last night followingreports of shots being fired in two terminals.Travellersincluding hundreds of Britonswere ordered to leave Terminal 8 at 9.30pm after witnesses reported hearing at least two shots.Forty-five minutes later the panic spread to Terminal 1 with another report of shots fired and an active shooter which led police to evacuate the building as well.Videos posted to social media showed panicked scenes as passengers ran towards the doors of the airport terminals after being told to evacuate.All flights out of the airport were grounded and hundreds of police flooded the area to find the suspects.No suspects were found despite an intensive search by police.The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs JFK, said that preliminary investigations found there were no signs that any shots had been fired.A senior law enforcement official told NBC News that cheering, clapping and banging from people watching Usain Bolts 100m Olympic victory might have been misinterpreted as a fight and gunshots.JFK is the main airport for British tourists travelling to and from New York. The order to stop all flights from taking off happened at a time when many transatlantic flights bound for Heathrow were due to take offand many arriving from the UK had come in to land.Tony Brown, a senior producer at BBC News, wrote on Twitter: BA Captain telling a packed 747 from London there is a security situation elsewhere at #JFK and we arent being allowed off this plane.During the panic some flights bound for JFK were diverted to Buffalowhich is 370 miles away.Ashtyn Cook wrote: On our plane waiting to leave and cant take off now because shots fired in two terminals in JFK. Honestly kind of scared out of my mind.Passenger Josef Pfeiffer, who was on a flight stuck on the tarmac, tweeted: On a plane at #JFK and a bunch of people just ran out on the tarmac.Shortly after he added: The people that ran out on the tarmac were brought back in to terminal 2 just now by the police.Join the conversation about this storyNOW WATCH: Watch the Air Force drop 8 armored Humvees out of a plane from 5,000 feet
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