Ellen Pompeo had a rather unusual encounter with TSA security over a bag of sunflower seeds.
The 55-year-old “Grey’s Anatomy” actress was stopped at the airport in March when she tried to bring a bag of sunflower seeds onto her flight.
In an interview with Travel + Leisure published on May 29, Pompeo shared: “I had a bag of sunflower seeds, organic from Erewhon, absolutely the most expensive sunflower seeds you can buy.”
However, it was that bag of sunflower seeds that got her into big trouble when airport security held her for an hour, even calling in the bomb squad to handle the situation.
At first, Ellen Pompeo thought it was a joke because she couldn’t believe how serious the situation was. But she quickly realized that the security officers weren’t joking. They explained that it was likely that a chemical on the packaging of the sunflower seeds had triggered the security alarm.
Although she wanted to voluntarily throw away the “premium” sunflower seeds so she could continue boarding, security personnel asked her to stay and wait for the bomb squad to assess the situation.
Ellen confided: “I almost missed my flight. No one would believe it! I texted my communications manager and said, ‘I might not be able to get on this flight, and you’ll never guess why.’”
Despite the unexpected incident, Pompeo still expressed to Travel + Leisure that she loves to travel, especially when she is with her children. “I love any trip as long as I have my children with me,” she said.
