Stranded passengers kicked out of airport

An elderly Colorado couple stranded on Kauai due to a canceled flight was ordered Tuesday out of Lihue Airport and into a stormy night and wound up sleeping on the concrete floor of a shelter.

"To put somebody out in a storm is mind-blowing," said Michael Young, 71.

On Thursday a state official was apologetic, saying it is not state policy to turn out stranded passengers. An official with the airport’s security guard company promised an investigation into the matter.

Young and his wife, Georgia, 70, of Littleton, Colo., traveled to Kauai for the first time for a five-day vacation to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary.

Before they checked out of their hotel, Michael Young confirmed with Hawaiian Airlines that their flight was still scheduled to depart Monday night. When they arrived at the airport, travel agents told them their flight was delayed and then canceled due to stormy weather.

At about 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, a security guard informed the couple and other travelers, including a pregnant woman and a disabled man, that they needed to leave the airport because it was shutting down for the night. When they told him they wanted to stay because of the bad weather, "he told us if we did not leave, he would call the Police Department and have us removed," Young said.

Young said he was flabbergasted. "You should think of people’s safety. You don’t turn them out at midnight when there’s flooding conditions."

While they headed outside in the stormy weather, a firefighter in the area approached them. "He saw the problem right from the get-go," said Young. The firefighter hailed a taxicab to take the group to a shelter located about a mile away.

With all cots filled, Young and other travelers slept on the concrete floor in sleeping bags and blankets. At dawn, volunteers drove them to the airport.

Young became emotional as his voice softened to a whisper as he expressed gratitude to the firefighter and shelter volunteers. They were angels in disguise, he said. "We got dropped and the angels picked us up. It was nice to see that side of Hawaii."

Young hopes airport policy and procedures will be followed at Lihue Airport so the fiasco doesn’t happen again. "This needs to be avoided. This has to be avoided," he said.

Dan Meisenzahl, spokes­man for the state Department of Transportation, said officials were dismayed at how the situation was handled and questioned why the guard did not notify the security supervisor, airport management or transportation officials to inform them of the stranded travelers’ dilemma. Transportation officials learned of the problem Wednesday. "We want to know why that phone call never happened," he said.

The security guard is employed by Securitas Security Services, contracted for services at Lihue Airport for the past three years. According to Area Vice President Sanj Sappal, the company is working with the state and conducting a full investigation into policies and procedures.

"We take this matter seriously," said Sappal. "We want to make sure this doesn’t happen again."

He declined to say how many years the guard has been employed with Securitas, saying he could not divulge the information until the investigation is complete. "We want to get all the facts," said Sappal. If there is any responsibility on the part of the guard, he added, actions will be taken.

Lihue Airport is normally closed overnight.

According to Mei­sen­zahl, a policy allows stranded travelers to stay in conference rooms when flights are affected by stormy weather. Under the policy, guards are instructed to call a supervisor who then contacts the Transportation Department.

The security guard showed a lack of common sense, said Mei­sen­zahl. "We’re very embarrassed by this incident," he said.

He apologized on behalf of the airport but described Securitas as a great partner. He called the event unfortunate and an anomaly. "This is definitely an anomaly, but it’s something we have to get to the bottom to and make sure it doesn’t happen again."

According to Mei­sen­zahl, the guard is not working at Lihue Airport during the course of the investigation.