All 136 passengers and seven crew members were OK
A Boeing 737 plane flying into Florida skidded off the runway as it attempted to land during a thunderstorm and ended up in the St. Johns River.
Fortunately, however, the plane was not submerged and only in shallow water. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s office confirmed that there were no casualties and all 136 passengers and seven crew members were safely removed from the aircraft. 21 people were transported to hospitals in good condition, according to Officer Tom Francis of Jacksonville Fire Rescue.
#JSO Marine Unit was called to assist @NASJax_ in reference to a commercial airplane in shallow water. The plane was not submerged. Every person is alive and accounted for. pic.twitter.com/4n1Fyu5nTS
— Jax Sheriff's Office (@JSOPIO) May 4, 2019
Captain Michael Connor, the commanding officer of NAS Jacksonville, said during a news conference that passengers were a mix of civilian and military personnel flying from the Guantanamo Bay military station in Cuba.
He acknowledged that the crash could have ended much worse for those on board. “I think it is a miracle,” he said. “We could be talking about a different story this evening.”
Passenger Cheryl Bormann told CNN the plane flew through lightning and thunderstorms on the way to Jacksonville before it tried to land. She also described how “the plane bounced and screeched and bounced some more” before it came to a “complete crash stop” in the river.
