A Southwest Airlines flight blew an engine on its way to Dallas, Texas, killing a passenger onboard and injuring seven others, forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Southwest Flight 1380 was flying at 30,000 feet when the incident occurred, resulting in the death of a 43-year-old woman, Jennifer Riordan, from Albuquerque, New Mexico.

New Mexico Broadcasters expressed their deepest condolences for Riordan’s death confirming she was a graduate of the University of New Mexico as well as a former NMBA Board member and NMBA Scholarship winner. She was also the Vice President of Community Relations at Wells Fargo in Albuquerque, ABC Affiliated KOAT reported.

She was married to Michael Riordan, the former COO of the City of Albuquerque. The couple have two children together.

The following statement was issued by Jennifer’s family regarding her untimely death:

"Jennifer Riordan has passed away as a result of previously reported events on Southwest Airlines flight #1380. Jennifer’s vibrancy, passion and love infused our community and reached across our country. Her impact on everything and everyone she touched can never be fully measured. But foremost, she is the bedrock of our family. She and Mike wrote a love story unlike any other. Her beauty and love is evident through her children. We are so appreciative of the outpouring of support from family, friends and our community. We do ask that those who seek to express their condolences and prayers as well as media outlets respect our privacy at this time. Our family and friends need this time to both grieve and celebrate Jennifer’s impact on us all. In her memory — please remember to always be kind, loving, caring, and sharing."

Jennifer was sitting on the left side of the plane when something heavy flew into a window on her side after the engine exploded, leaving a large hole near her.

Hollie Mackey, who was sitting next to the victim and Amy Serafini, who was sitting in the row behind, said Jennifer began getting sucked into the hole and several passengers rushed to help her get back to her seat.

“We could feel the air from the outside coming in, and then we had smoke kind of coming in the window. Meanwhile, you have passengers that were in that aisle, trying to attend to the woman that was bleeding from the window explosion," passenger Marty Martinez said, CNN reported. "That was just chaos all around."

As objects flew out of the hole and a number of passengers tried in vain to close the hole by stuffing the hole with their jackets, "passengers right next to her (Jennifer) were holding onto her. And meanwhile, there was blood all over this man's hands. He was tending to her," Martinez added.

Southwest Airlines
A Southwest Airlines jet sits on the runway at Philadelphia International Airport after it was forced to land with an engine failure, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on April 17, 2018. Getty Images/ DOMINICK REUTER

After trying to get her back into her seat for a long time, two men finally accomplished the task and a nurse arrived at the scene and tried to perform CPR on the victim. Although she was rushed to a hospital, Jennifer died of her injuries.

The Southwest airlines released the following statement after the tragedy:

“We are deeply saddened to confirm that there is one fatality resulting from this accident. The entire Southwest Airlines Family is devastated and extends its deepest heartfelt sympathy to the customers, employees, family members, and loved ones affected by this tragic event. We have activated our emergency response team and are deploying every resource to support those affected by this tragedy."

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