'Complete chaos' at Dublin Airport after PA system gets stuck on evacuation mode

'Worryingly clear that if there were an emergency no one there would have a clue what to do'

Passengers flying from Dublin Airport described scenes of “complete chaos” after a PA system in departures got stuck on evacuation mode.

The airport confirmed on Friday morning there had been a “fault” with its sound system at a boarding gate area in Terminal 1, but that no evacuation was underway.

The PA system repeated the following message on loop from 6.30am: “Attention please, attention please. We are responding to an alarm activation. Please evacuate this area immediately and follow the directions of airport staff.”

The malfunctioning order meant airport staff were unable to make any announcements on the loudspeaker, further confusing passengers.

Some accused airport staff of failing to communicate what was happening.

“This shambles in Dublin Airport is kind of funny, but also worryingly clear that if there were an emergency no-one there would have a clue what to do,” one Twitter user said.

“I would be very worried if there was a real issue, no one seems to have been trained to manage this type of situation," another said. “Very few passengers moved, staff were non-existent and when they did appear they were unable to manage the crowd.”

Rob Jones, chairperson of the Green Party in Dublin Bay North, said: “Evacuation in Dublin Airport T1 complete chaos. Wouldn't like to see how they handle a real emergency.”

The alarm has since been turned off and normal service resumed, the airport said.

A spokesperson for Dublin Airport told The Independent: "We have standard operating procedures when a fire alarm is activated. The area is attended to by fire marshals and airport police to investigate the cause of the alarm and we also monitor CCTV in the area in question.

"It was quickly determined that there was no fire or cause for an evacuation, however there was a fault with the PA system which was stuck on an evacuation mode setting."

The alarm was stopped at 6.50am, the spokesperson said, and staff were deployed to the area to "reassure" passengers. There was no disruption to flights, he added.