Mass Vomiting Flight: 26 Qantas Passengers Sick

[The Straight Story]

Twenty-six passengers were rushed off a Qantas flight for medical treatment in Sydney after a stomach bug struck mid-journey, triggering a mass vomiting episode.

The sick passengers - all Australian - were part of the same tour group and were suspected of contracting the gastro intestinal illnes before they boarded the 14-hour flight in Santiago, Qantas spokesman Luke Enright said.

The ill passengers were moved to seats at the rear of the plane near where four toilets were situated, Australian Associated Press reported.

The Boeing 747, with more than 300 people aboard, was met by ambulance paramedics when it landed at Sydney airport and the ill passengers were quarantined, Qantas spokesman Luke Enright said.

Passengers well enough to leave were escorted through the airport with minimal exposure to other passengers, the New South Wales state Health Ministry said in a statement.

http://news.sky.com/story/1123272/mass-vomiting-flight-26-qantas-passengers-sick

[liberal N proud]

1. Never eat the airplane food

[KoKo]

16. According to article..it was Norovirus. And that's one nasty experience..

(The whole plane would need to be decontaminated. Norovirus is an awful thing and highly contagious. I don't know how four bathrooms could have handled it. You literally can't leave the toilet when the episodes of vomiting begin. And it's not just the vomiting)

--------
Authorities said the passengers' symptoms were consistent with the norovirus infection, a common cause of outbreaks of gastroenteritis.

The airline spokesman said he could not say when the flight crew became aware of the sickness on board but it was not an emergency that could have resulted in the flight being diverted.

"They've known for some time in the air that sickness was aboard so they were able to call through and organise for the appropriate authorities to greet the aircraft at the arrival, and those passengers were quarantined," Mr Enright said.

Qantas said other passengers had been advised to keep a close eye on their health over the next two days and to seek medical advice if they felt ill.

[Berlum]

2. Spewage on a Plane

Who has the film rights?

"Think happy thoughts"

[KittyWampus]

3. So what's worse on a plane? Crying babies or multiple vomiting passengers?

[The Straight Story]

4. I would rather have both than be on a plane full of republicans

[KittyWampus]

5. Or a plane full of snakes...

[MuseRider]

18. I had to sit next to Ted Stevens on a flight

from Kansas City to either Vancouver or Seattle, don't remember. It was interesting, packed together in coach. He was very nice, fascinating in that typical Republican way,lol, he talked the entire trip. This was long before his screaming, "NO" or babbling about the intertubes . I rather enjoyed it but was pretty frustrated with his ideology.

[Historic NY]

6. Ah that must have been some stenchful flight....

like when one of kids spewed in school its stunk for hours even when they used stuff to cut the smell.....

[MuseRider]

7. It was a complete

and total barf-a-rama. From Stephen King's Stand By Me.

[PD Turk]

8. GMTA

[MuseRider]

11. :-)

[pipi_k]

12. OMG

One of my favorite movie scenes of all time!

The written account in his book is even more hilarious, IMO.


PS...if you like that, you might like the carnival ride scene in the movie, "The Sandlot".

hahahahaha!!!!

[MuseRider]

15. No thanks

I barely made it through the one in Stand By Me. It seems I am OK reading about this but I can't even watch it on TV or at a movie theater without having problems. I was an ICU nurse. You have no idea what I traded with my co workers just to get them to deal with my vomiting patient, but thanks for the recommendation.

[PDJane]

9. On the way to Texas last time, I got stuck in front of four seats of Republicans.

I was sitting in the front of the plane; they were in the next seats. They didn't like Canada. They let everyone know they thought we were commies, with no freedom at all. Now this, mind, they were coming home from Toronto. I didn't recognize my home town. They seemed to think that no one deserves free health care. That most of the people didn't speak English. That there were all kinds of foreigners (they didn't seem to think that they were foreigners, too). That hardly anyone smoked, especially American cigarettes. (They apparently brought some with them, for the natives, and couldn't give them away.) And that we were giving away free flu shots to anyone with a Toronto address! Anyone, fer gawds sake. Free! (We do. It's called harm reduction. You can give a real Toronto address, you don't need a health card. Prevents epidemics, eh?) I asked them why they thought that was such a bad idea; they seemed to think that any riff raff could get a shot without paying that way. They were stunned when I told them that was the point.

They gabbled on about anchor babies, and seemed stunned when I told them it wasn't a problem. It was a bizarre and surreal conversation. I would rather have had someone running to the head or a crying baby (in fact, there was one. I totally understood her problem, and took her while her mother made her way to the washroom.)

Gods. Incredible flight, incredible landing, and I was very glad to reach my hostess and her husband. THEY finally left for Colorado.

[CreekDog]

10. .

[MrScorpio]

13. I think that they've had it with all of that motherfuckin' puke on that motherfuckin' plane... nt

[pipi_k]

14. Uh, oh...

26 barfers

4 toilets


I'll bet that flight got interesting.


There have been times I've been so sick even a whole toilet to myself wasn't good enough.

[kestrel91316]

17. Betcha EVERY other passenger on that plane gets norovirus now, too.

That stuff spreads like wildfire.