Anyone working a security position knows that, at some point in their career, they could face a dangerous situation.  When most of us envision such a scenario, we imagine a security person having to take down and armed intruder.  The last thing we would think of is them having to watch out for falling transatlantic jetliner parts.  Right?

Apparently, that is what happened at the Maine State House on Friday afternoon.

According to a press release from Shannon Moss at the Maine Department of Public Safety, at about 12:20 PM on Friday (August 12th), Capitol Police Screener Craig Donahue was walking outside the building's main entrance when a large piece of metal slammed into the ground a few feet from him.

The six or seven pound component, which has been described as a "sleeve-like" object, appears to have come from a high flying jetliner on a transatlantic flight.

Apparently, two other people were walking near Donahue when the object came down.  Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident.

The press release says, in part:

Capitol Police immediately notified the Augusta State Airport and the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA has launched an investigation while attempting to locate the source of the part which is likely from a large airliner on an international route. The FAA made awareness notifications to flights that were over the Capitol area at the time. The source remains unknown and under FAA investigation.

Hopefully, the FAA will be able to determine what plane the object came from so they can make sure it never happens again.

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