TSA: Hawaii mother wrongfully humiliated over breast pump

A Hawaii woman says she was humiliated after a Transportation Security Administration agent told her to pump breast milk in a public toilet in order to board a plane, according to KITV4 News.

The TSA has since apologized and admitted an error, according to the TV station.

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ABC News said the woman, Amy Strand, 38, is a mother of four and a principal at a Maui high school

“I'm in a dress, in heels and I find myself in front of a sink and mirrors with travelers coming in and out of the bathroom," Strand was quoted as saying. "I'm standing at the sink with my breast hanging out, pumping. I wanted to cry. I was humiliated."

KITV4, an ABC affiliate, said a TSA agent at Kauai's Lihue Airport told the women she could not board a flight to Maui with a breast pump so long as the accompanying bottles were empty. Strand was traveling with her 9-month-old daughter Eva.

The TV station said the TSA had recently changed its policy to allow women to carry breast milk with them without first testing it but that the agency still considered breast pumps to be medical equipment that can require additional screening.

“I had to stand in front of the mirrors and the sinks and pump my breast, in front of every tourist that walked into that bathroom," Strand was quoted as telling KITV.

In a statement, the TSA said the agent was mistaken in telling Strand "that she could only bring the pack if it was medically necessary.”

"We accept responsibility for the apparent misunderstanding and any inconvenience or embarrassment this incident may have caused her,” the TSA statement was quoted as saying.

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According to ABC News, the TSA also said the agent "is receiving remedial training."