Dublin Airport has confirmed that it had to evacuate because someone had a smoke in the toilets.

Passengers and staff were, briefly, forced to leave Terminal 2 after an alarm went off.

"Someone had a smoke in the toilets and as normal procedure we had to evacuate the building to make sure there was nothing more sinister," said Dublin Airport Authority spokesperson Siobhan O'Donnell.

"We had to take all the necessary precautions."

Normal operations have resumed in T2 @DublinAirport following a brief evacuation. — Dublin Airport (@DublinAirport) December 23, 2015

Passengers have since been allowed to return to Terminal 2.

There were no disruptions to any flights.

RTE's Ryan Tubridy was broadcasting from the airport at the time and was also caught up in the alert, however, his radio show was able to continue as normal after the 9am news.

Source: Irish Independent

Irish Independent