Did you lose your phone, earbuds or eyeballs at Miami’s airport? Here’s a way to search

It’s easy to lose something in a crowded airport.

Perhaps you forgot to scoop up your keys from a TSA basket during the security check. Or you left your phone on a seat at the gate while you went to the restroom.

Shelves and shelves of lost personal items — hats, keys, umbrellas, cellphones, purses — fill the Lost and Found office at MIA.

With the winter holidays underway, the Miami airport expects a surge in passengers, and even more lost items. In 2022, for instance Lost and Found logged 41,800 items.

Here’s what to know about Lost and Found at Miami International Airport:

How do you reach Lost and Found at MIA?

Location: Miami airport’s Lost and Found office is on the fourth floor of Concourse D.

File a claim: To register a missing item, go to the Lost and Found page on the airport’s website.

Contact: Call the Lost and Found office at 888-335-0690.

A warning for travelers

Lost and Found warns travelers to avoid third-party vendors for hel[ in locating lost items. These companies offer to search for your items for a fee.

The airport’s service is free to search, find and store items. Some companies charge $40 to file a claim with the airport that you can file yourself, airport officials say.

What to know about items that land in Lost and Found

The airport keeps items for 30 days. That’s what the state of Florida allows for airports. Jewelry is stored for 60 days. After that, unclaimed items are sent to Goodwill.

Anything left inside the airport in the main terminals, in the employee shuttle, the rental car center, buses for passengers, or parking garages go to the Lost and Found office. Anything left on the plane goes back to the airline. The office gets items left at TSA checkpoints after 24 hours.

Lost and Found at the Miami airport gets a lot more items than they can catalog. So, the office, for instance, has a bin of keys that people can search for, along with hats and neck pillows.

Tips in claiming a lost item at the airport

▪ MIA requests identification like a driver’s license or official ID. It ca be sent digitally. You can take a picture of your passport with your smartphone and send it by email.

▪ Accurately describe your lost item.

▪ Provide a serial number or password for electronics so the airport can log in. Describe a specific background image on the device.

What are the most unusual items found at the airport?

Workers once found a pair of human eyes, likely being transported for a surgical procedure.

Last year, Lost and Found received grillz — gold teeth — left at a TSA checkpoint. A traveler had removed them at security.