Kolkata: As he lay on the hospital bed with a heavily bandaged finger and excruciating pain in his back, a passenger of the Durgapur bound Spicejet flight from Mumbai which experienced severe air turbulence on Sunday shuddered in fear while describing his ordeal. He said that half an hour before the landing, the aircraft started to shake mildly but after some time there was violent jerking.
Asked how he was injured, the passenger said that due to the violent jerking the seat broke. "Half an hour before landing there was a mild jerking. After some time the jerking increased and the seat broke. I was coming from Mumbai and going to Durgapur. We don't know the reason behind the incident but it was a bit terrifying," the passenger said.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, a doctor at the Andal hospital said that the passengers on the aircraft were injured as the overhead luggage cabin fell on them during the turbulence, adding that the information was given to him by Airport authorities.
Dr. Tapan Kumar Roy also said that several passengers sustained head and spinal cord injuries due to the jerking."The overhead passenger cabin in the aircraft broke and fell on the passengers causing the injuries. This is the information provided to me by the Airport authorities. Several passengers sustained head and spinal cord injuries. One person sustained a critical spinal cord injury. We have sent him to a spinal cord surgeon," he said.
Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has ordered a probe into the incident. A DGCA official said that a team has been set up in this regard and asked to submit a report as soon as possible. A total of 40 passengers sustained injuries in the incident out of whom the injuries of 15 passengers were serious. The flight landed at Andal Airport at around 7.25 pm on Sunday.
Also read:40 flyers injured in SpiceJet Mumbai-Durgapur flight turbulence; DGCA to probe incident
