Hamburg airport evacuated after toxin affects 50 passengers

Hundreds of passengers were temporarily evacuated, more than 50 people were injured and air traffic was halted for more than an hour on Sunday afternoon after an irritant gas was circulated around Hamburg airport via its air-conditioning system.

Fire services ruled out suggestions of a terrorist attack, saying they believed the toxin to be pepper spray that had emanated from a cartridge discarded by a passenger in a bin outside security gates.

They said a "prankster" may have released the pepper spray, which then spread through the ventilation system.

Pepper spray is legal, and readily available, in Germany.

The alarm was raised shortly after 12:00pm after several passengers complained about breathing problems and burning eyes.

Fire crews set up treatment centres for people complaining of irritation. Firefighters and ambulance workers told passengers to leave and wait outside the airport building – in sub-zero temperatures – while they examined individuals to determine whether they needed to be taken to hospital.

At least 68 people received medical care and nine were taken to hospital, as the airport was closed to inbound and outbound air traffic between 12.31pm and 1.45pm.

According to the airport spokeswoman Stefanie Harder, up to 13 flights were affected by the closure, with several planes having to wait on the runway or circle above the city. Two flights were diverted to Bremen, 105km away.

Hamburg, which is home to 1.7 million people, is Germany’s second-largest city. Its airport, recently renamed in honour of the late German chancellor Helmut Schmidt, is Germany’s fifth-busiest commercial airport, serving cities including New York, Tehran and Dubai.