Passenger Shares Video Footage of Inside Emirates Plane With Sick Passengers

Reports say 100 people sick; Emirates Airlines say 10 sick

A passenger shared video footage of inside the grounded Emirates Airlines plane that reportedly landed with numerous sick people on board on Sept. 5.

Erin Sykes posted a video on Twitter of an official telling passengers to keep out of the plane’s aisles while telling them “no baggage in the aisles.”

“People were coughing the whole time. Now some people have fevers over 100,” Sykes told CNN. “They should never had been allowed to board.”

There were reports of 100 out of 500 passengers who fell ill on the plane. Videos and photos showed numerous ambulances near the plane on the JFK tarmac.

ABC7 reported after 12 p.m. local time that 10 people were hospitalized, eight were being treated on-site, and others were being evacuated.

Emirates Flight 203, an Airbus A380, had 521 passengers on board. It arrived after 9 a.m. local time in New York from Dubai.

New York City press secretary Eric Phillips wrote in a tweet at 11:30 a.m. that “432 now off and cleared,” referring to the passengers. “The flight was direct from Dubai. It appears some of the ill passengers came from Mecca before getting on in Dubai,” he said earlier in the day.

On Twitter, Emirates Airlines wrote: “Emirates can confirm that about 10 passengers on #EK203 from Dubai to New York were taken ill. On arrival, as a precaution, they were attended to by local health authorities. All others will disembark shortly. The safety & care of our customers is our first priority.”

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection were notified of the incident, according to the ABC report.

“CDC is aware of an Emirates flight from Saudi Arabia arriving at JFK this morning with some passengers who are reporting an unspecified illness,” a CDC official told the Wall Street Journal.

“Passengers who are not ill will be allowed to continue with their travel plans, and if necessary will be followed up with by health officials,” said the CDC about the incident, according to CBS NY.