Passenger thrown into overhead bin as Air Europa flight encounters severe turbulence
File photo of an Air Europa flight
An Air Europa plane was forced to make an emergency landing after dozens of passengers were hurt during severe turbulence.
Around 30 people were taken to hospital following the incident on board the Air Europa flight from Madrid.
A Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, on a flight to Montevideo, Uruguay, was diverted due to unexpected turbulence and landed at Natal airport in Brazil around 2:30 am on Monday (Jul 1).
Online photos and videos claimed to be from the airplane's interior after landing. These images showed medical personnel attending to injured passengers, including a woman in a neck brace. Traces of blood were also visible.
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Several seats and the ceiling of the aircraft were badly damaged, while there were unverified claims that a man got stuck after being thrown upwards into an overhead compartment.
"Our flight bound for Montevideo was diverted to Natal due to strong turbulence,” The airline said in a statement.
"The plane landed normally and those injured of varying severity are already being treated," the statement further read.
Brazilian health authorities reported 30 passengers from the Air Europa flight received treatment at Natal hospitals for minor cuts and bruises, or injuries to bones or muscles.
Air Europa informed that a second plane would be sent from Madrid to pick up the passengers and continue the trip to Uruguay.
Uruguay's foreign ministry said in a statement that passengers in need of medical attention were taken to the Monsenhor Walfredo Gurgel hospital in Natal.
Notably, it comes weeks after a 73-year-old British man died following severe turbulence on a Singapore Airlines flight from London to the city-state in South East Asia.
Scientists also say theair turbulence, which is invisible to radar, is getting worse because of climate change.
As per a 2023 study,the annual duration of clear air turbulence increased by 17 per cent from 1979 to 2020, with the most severe cases increasing by more than 50 per cent.
(With inputs from agencies)