Medical, workers’ compensation and liability insurance companies are likely on alert today as a JetBlue flight was forced to divert in South Dakota after severe turbulence.
Two staff members and 22 passengers were injured when the cross-country flight, from Boston to Sacramento, began experiencing turbulence – eventually plunging suddenly and sending people flying.
“The captain had said that we were going to be hitting [turbulence]. You could tell there were storm clouds outside. It was just normal – if you fly a lot…it just kind of shakes and then it’s okay,” one passenger of Flight 429 told South Dakota Public Broadcasting Station 429. “And then all of a sudden there was quite a big shake. And then right after that there was a drop.”
Dr. Alan Lee, who treated several passengers after the incident, said he was working on my laptop when the plane began to plummet. His laptop almost hit the ceiling and several other passengers hit their heads, including a flight attendant in the galley during the incident.
Passengers described the incident as “like a bad dream.”
There is no word yet on insurance procedures, but JetBlue’s workers’ comp provider will likely have to attend to injuries of staff members. The airline may also be in trouble if any passengers sue – something that has happened following turbulence on JetBlue before.
In 2011, a flight from San Juan to Boston suddenly dropped without any warning to passengers and some were left with what they called “permanent physical injuries.” At least two, Deborah and Scott Simmons, filed a lawsuit against the airline saying it had neglected to alert passengers to the rough weather ahead.
Deborah Simmons suffered injuries to her head, neck and back, and also said she suffers from PTSD.
The incident comes following several aviation-related loss events, though until recently, none had occurred in the United States.
