30 passengers hurt, man stuck in overhead, as plane hits turbulence

Around 30 passengers have been hurt after severe turbulence hit a plane flying across the Atlantic. Passengers were thrown from their seats into the ceiling of the plane when the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner suddenly dropped midflight.

The Air Europa light was midway between Spain and Uruguay when the accident happened, leaving passengers thrown from their seat and one man stuck in an overhead bin. Ceiling panels were torn off amid damage to flight flight UX045, reports The Express.

Video footage also shows a group of people huddled together to pull a man free as a baby could be heard crying, seats were damaged and the oxygen masks were deployed.

After getting hit with turbulence flying above the Atlantic Ocean, the plane, carrying 325 passengers to the Uruguayan capital, was forced to land in Natal, in northeastern Brazil, Air Europa said.

“The plane has landed normally and the injuries of varying degrees that were recorded are already being treated,” Air Europa said in a statement. One passenger told a local outlet that the flight was fine until the captain issued a warning about turbulence and urged passengers to remain seated and fasten their seatbelts.

“A long time after that, there was a very, very slight turbulence, it was barely felt, and from one moment to the next the plane abruptly fell and we all went up,” the passenger, Norys, told Uruguayan outlet El Observador.

He added: “Those who did not have seatbelts flew and some remained hooked to the roof."