A false announcement about a gunman wandering around Los Angeles International Airport sent some 20 passengers rushing to the tarmac from the boarding gates. 

Authorities said someone had mistakenly announced over the public announcement system that police are pursuing a gunman inside the airport. LAX Police Sgt. Belinda Joseph said the person who made the announcement could have misinterpreted police activity outside Terminal 2. 

Like Us on Facebook

Joseph said police were responding to an emergency call that an unarmed man was trying to commit suicide. Police apprehended the man and brought him to a hospital for treatment. But Joseph said the announcement that "there was a man with a gun" was not true.

Benjamin Horton, a photojournalist who was at the airport at the time of panic shared that people started screaming upon hearing the announcement. He said passengers where running from different directions as they try to get away from the shooter.

According to Horton, an old woman fell and got treaded. The woman was not injured, he added.

The passengers rushed to the tarmac through emergency doors. Airport police said the situation was under control within 15 minutes.

In November 2013, a gunman passed LAX airport security and opened fire, killing a Transportation Security Administration officer and injuring several others.

The accused, Paul Ciancia, pleaded not guilty to murder charges.

In 2002, an attack by a lone gunman at the ticket counter left an airline employee dead. Police considered the attack as an act of terrorism as it followed the September 11 attacks. The assailant was an Egyptian national who traveled to the United States as a tourist.

TagsLos Angeles airport, LAX, false alarm, false gunman alert, airport panic