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A flight from the Dominican
Republic to Canada
was diverted to Fort Lauderdale
overnight because some passengers complained about getting sick.
The Broward County Sheriff’s Office said that eight
passengers were taken to Memorial Regional Hospital
in Hollywood as a precaution after Air Transat
Flight 477 landed at Fort Lauderdale/ Hollywood International Airport
about 11 p.m. ET.
“It was not an emergency landing. It was simply a report of
sick passengers on board,” said Greg Meyer, public information officer for the
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, according to the National Post.
“Due to the multiple symptoms and unknown illness”
authorities alerted local health authorities, the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, the sheriff office’s homeland security unit and federal customs
officials, the sheriff’s office said, according to CNN.
The ill passengers turned to be family members who had eaten
together. The CDC determined that their illness was not airborne and not
contagious, CDC representative Lola Russell said. Something the passengers ate
or drank must have caused them the illness, she added. They remain hospitalized
until their health state improves.
About 230 other people on the plane were evaluated and
cleared to continue their flight to Edmonton,
Alberta, the sheriff’s office
said.
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