Australian Airport Gas Scare, Cause Unknown, some suspect terrorism.

Here's the link. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,12331734%255E2702,00.html

Here's the article:

Mystery gas hits passengersDaniel Hoare,Steve CreedyFebruary 22, 2005
A MYSTERY gas leak threw Melbourne airport into chaos yesterday, putting 47 people in hospital and stranding 20,000 travellers as 78 flights were cancelled.Paramedics treated 57 Virgin Blue passengers and staff outside the south terminal after they experienced nausea, dizziness, vomiting and shortness of breath from the chemical, which emergency crews were unable to detect.
Clad in elaborate protective gear, Metropolitan Fire Brigade officers used sophisticated chemical detection equipment in a bid to locate and identify the substance.
Despite extensive air testing, the investigators were unable to detect the substance and the terminal was reopened at 6.15pm.
Peter Holmes, acting chief officer of the MFB, said initial air testing at midday had detected a chemical element in the air, but it had rapidly dissipated and did not reappear.

He said the terminal had been declared safe by investigators several hours before it reopened.
"We were not able to find what the substance was," he said. "You would normally be able to narrow it down. We had some readings early on in the day, but it started reading clear in the afternoon.
"There is no doubt there was something in there, but it has dissipated."
Mr Holmes said the chemical substance could have been spread by air-conditioning ducts, contaminated baggage or even footwear.
Thousands of passengers were forced to stay overnight in Melbourne after the terminal - which caters for Virgin Blue and Regional Express passengers - was evacuated and shut down for more than eight hours.
Paramedics said all the patients experienced visible physical symptoms, including vomiting and de-hydration.
"They were certainly quite distressed ... so whatever substance this has been has certainly caused a physiological response," said Paul Holman, Metropolitan Ambulance Service operations manager.
Virgin Blue staff were last night working to clear nationwide backlogs of passengers after the incident, which grounded a third of the airline's fleet.
A spokeswoman for the company said 62 flights were cancelled by the closure, stranding or delaying more than 14,000 passengers across Australia.
The "knock-on" effect of the closure was felt as far away as Western Australia and Queensland, she said.
Regional Express reported at least 16 affected flights but said it had re-booked many of its passengers on Qantas.
Neither airline was able to calculate the financial cost of the closure, but Rex warned it could subtract thousands of dollars from its bottom line.
Virgin also defended itself against criticism it had not done enough to book people on other airlines, saying its policy was to provide people with a credit or the next possible Virgin flight.
"Some people have done that themselves," a spokeswoman said.
"They've taken the credit shell with us and jumped on another airline.
"But the majority are trying to get to where they need to go on us."
The spokeswoman said she believed the number of cancellations could be a record for the airline and did not know whether it would seek compensation.
Qantas, whose Melbourne airport terminal was still operational, put on two additional 737s and replaced a 737 with a bigger 767 in an attempt to accommodate those trying to leave Melbourne.
An airport spokesman said its investigations into the cause of the gas leak would continue.