Woman On Delayed Plane For 7 Hours With No Food, Water Or AC: WFSB 3

(Editor's Note: This story was reported By Sam Smink of WFSB 3 TV and is being shared on Patch with permission. This story has also been updated on Saturday to reflect that United Airlines has issued a comment via WFSB 3 TV.)

CONNECTICUT — Seven hours in unbearable heat.

No food or water available. That’s how one Connecticut woman is describing her experience with a delayed international flight. Now the US Department of Transportation is investigating.

VIRAL VIDEO:

In a Tik Tok that has since gone viral, you can hear critical care nurse Christine Ieronimo telling a United Airlines worker about the experience she and hundreds of other passengers just went through.

“The girl had a panic attack and passed out. We had elderly people, we had babies. We had pregnant women, not even water. You didn’t even pass around water,” says Ieronimo.

Ieronimo and the passengers are standing at their gate in Newark Liberty International Airport. Their flight was delayed for 7 hours, canceled at 1 in the morning.

The passengers tell the worker " we were trapped on that plane for 7 hours in 70-80 plus heat.“

”It was hot, thick, it was hard to breathe,” says Ieronimo. “I’m surprised somebody didn’t die because there were elderly people on the plane.”

The passengers were headed to Rome on an overnight flight July 3rd when shortly after being seated, things started to go wrong.

“We noticed it was getting hot. The air conditioning wasn’t working,” says Ieronimo.

The plane headed back to the gates, mechanics jumped on, and the problem seemed to be fixed.

But then, as they waited to take off...

“It started getting hot again,” says Ieronimo.

That’s when Ieronimo says the Captain announced the plane was going back to the gate and they’d be getting off. A process that took over 3 hours.

”People were taking off their shirts, and women were in sports bras, it was just so hot. It became unbearable and there was no ventilation,” says Ieronimo.

The biggest shock for Ieronimo?

”During the seven hours, nothing was ever offered. Nobody even offered water,” says Ieronimo.

“‘What do you want me to do?’, was the exact quote I got from one of the flight attendants.”

Ieronimo says she watched elderly people sweat, a baby was crying, and a young girl almost passed out.

”She must have had a panic attack. And she was vomiting,” says Ieronimo.

DOT POLICY REQUIRES FOOD AND WATER:

According to the US Department of Transportation, “airlines must provide passengers with food and water no later than two hours after the tarmac delay begins ...”

And even United policy claims “United will provide adequate food and potable water no later than two hours after the start of the tarmac delay, unless the pilot-in-command determines that safety or security considerations preclude such service.”

So, what happened?

”If the CEO - Scott Kirby’s parents were on that plane, would he have done something?,” says Ieronimo.

Ieronimo says passengers were left in the airport, with no accommodations or food -- and a canceled flight.

A link United said passengers could click on for help wasn’t working. That’s what sparked the conversation that later went viral.

Ieronimo says her family eventually found rooms and were able to book new flights for the next day at their own expense, which added up to $4000.

United’s offer of compensation?

Vouchers worth $400.

She now has a message for United’s CEO.

”I think he needs to figure out how he is going to compensate all of us because it was a pretty horrific experience,” says Ieronimo.

UNITED AIRLINES REACTION:

We have reached out to United Airlines to learn more about what happened and what compensation is available for passengers.

On July 3, United flight 40 returned to the gate at Newark Liberty to address a temperature issue. Once there we offered customers the opportunity to deplane and later provided snacks and beverages. Our crew eventually exceeded their legally permitted duty hours and we had to cancel the flight. We regret we couldn’t provide our customers a better travel experience and offered compensation in the hopes of having an opportunity to welcome them back. United Airlines media relations

While United says snacks and beverages were provided in the airport, the I-Team has asked United to clarify once again if snacks and beverages were provided to all passengers while the plane was sitting on the Tarmac.

DOT REACTION:

In a statement, the US Department of Transportation says: The Department takes any violation of airlines’ tarmac delay obligations very seriously and is investigating the referenced incident involving United.

Airlines are required to have and adhere to assurances that they will not allow aircraft to remain on the tarmac for more than three hours for domestic flights without providing passengers the option to deplane, subject to exceptions related to safety, security, and Air Traffic Control related reasons.

An exception also exists for departure delays if the airline begins to return the aircraft to a suitable disembarkation point to deplane passengers by those times. Federal law also requires airlines to provide a comfortable cabin temperature during a tarmac delay.

(You can watch the full WFSB 3 TV newscast here and view the video).