At Least 10 People Injured Aboard United Airlines Flight After Plane Hits Turbulence

At least 10 people obtained turbulence-related injuries on a United Airlines flight from Panama to Houston, firefighters reported Tuesday.

According to KPRC, Firefighters said they took care of between 10 and 15 patients. According to a statement released by United Airlines, "Nine customers and one crew member were transported to the hospital for evaluation." Three people went to the hospital immediately after the flight landed at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

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United flight 1031 was traveling from Panama City, Panama to Houston. About 80 miles east of Cancun, Mexico, the crew reported turbulence, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The crew members on Boeing 737 reported the turbulence at around 1:40 p.m.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, turbulence is “air movement that normally cannot be seen and often occurs unexpectedly.” In the United States, there are around 58 turbulence-related injuries annually.

“Many different things may cause turbulence,” said Steve Allright, a British Airways captain, according to the Telegraph. “Turbulence is uncomfortable, but not dangerous. It is part of flying, and is not to be feared.”

Turbulence is rarely dangerous and is caused by many factors, such as atmospheric pressure, jet streams and impending weather disasters and thunderstorms.

“It helps to visualize flight as a river flowing rapidly over rocks, where water is forced upward and then down, with swirls and eddies,” said Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, a retired US Airways pilot and flight expert, as reported by USA Today.

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People at the highest risk during turbulence are flight attendants, children sitting on laps and passengers with unfastened seatbelts.

The firefighters who reported the injuries on the Houston-bound flight did not immediately disclose the severity of the injuries.