Chaos at JFK airport after reports of shots being fired

Passengers were evacuated from two terminals at New York's JFK International Airport last night after witnesses said they heard gunshots.

However, despite what the New York Post calls "a massive law enforcement hunt for an armed individual", police found no evidence of any shots being fired and the airport has since resumed normal operations.

The reports led to scenes of confusion and fear inside the airport. "Panicked travellers stampeded through Kennedy International Airport," says the New York Times, while one traveller told New York PIX 11 TV channel that terminal one was a "madhouse".

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CNN says that "hundreds of bags and suitcases were left behind as passengers ran out of the airport". One police officer shouted to travellers: "If you're forgetting anything, it's not worth your life. Everyone move now," says the NY Post.

Traveller Zac Young tweeted an image that appeared to show hundreds of travellers standing in the terminal with their hands raised over their heads.

Journalist Dan Archer also posted that security checkpoint gates had been closed and armed police were patrolling the terminal.

Some travellers trying to leave the terminals apparently found exits that led to the airport runway and confusion spread onto the tarmac, where recently arrived flights and those that had boarded for departure sat waiting in a state of limbo.

A Port Authority statement said early investigations had found no evidence of gunshots being fired - but gave no explanation as to what had caused the initial reports. Passengers were allowed back into some terminals at around midnight.

Law enforcement officials say it is possible that hoax emergency calls and word-of-mouth led to the panic, says CNN, while NBC News suggests clapping, banging and cheering by people watching the Olympics might have been mistaken for gunfire.