TSA Agent Remembered On 1st Anniversary Of LAX Shooting

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — The first TSA agent killed in the line of duty was remembered Saturday, one year after he was killed by a lone gunman near a security checkpoint in a packed terminal at Los Angeles International Airport.

A 10-second "moment of silence" was observed here and across the country for TSA agent Gerardo Hernandez.

At LAX, the sound of bagpipes preceded the moment of silence, and tears flowed down the faces of TSA officers gathered to remember Hernandez.

For those who still work in Terminal 3 not a day goes by that they don't remember what happened.

"Every time I go up those escalators every morning and see that spot my heart drops, my eyes get watery," said TSA supervisor Danielle Arocho. "It's hard for all of us...still as if it was yesterday."

Saturday's service took place by the very escalators near the TSA checkpoint where Hernandez was gunned down. His family was present as they laid a wreath and honored his memory and service to the department.

"I call him the light of Terminal 3, he is our hero, he is truly our hero and that is his legacy, and it will always be" said Arocho. "And I will honor him every dayI put on this uniform."

A lot has changed in a year when it comes to procedures and terminal security. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who was at Saturday's service, says some recommendations are already in place.

"We didn't have the training of civilians to respond to emergencies, which we're now implementing here," Garcetti said. "We have teams now, tactical EMS teams, that will go with armed escorts in the midst of these firefights to make sure that we can get health care as quickly as possible to people. And those are really important lessons learned."

Garcetti said that since the investigation and review of the incident close to 100 recommendations on procedures and terminal safety and were made, and more than half are already in place.