United Airlines Passengers Fall Ill on Flight After Cruise
Around two dozen passengers fell ill on a United Airlines flight from Vancouver, Canada to Houston, Texas on Friday. Approximately 25 people traveling in a group of 75 had nausea, according to Capt. Sedrick Robinett of the Houston Fire Department. HFD evaluated three passengers upon the plane’s arrival at George Bush Intercontinental Airport but none were transported to the hospital, he said.
“Several passengers who had been on the same cruise and did not feel well were on United Flight 1528 from Vancouver to Houston Friday night,” United told USA TODAY in an emailed statement. The airline did not answer a question about what cruise line or ship the flyers had been traveling on before their flight.
“United Airlines is actively coordinating with health authorities to address the situation,” the airline’s statement continued. “As a precautionary measure, the aircraft will be removed from service and go through a deep cleaning before returning to service. Ensuring the health and safety of our passengers and crew remains our top priority.”
The Houston Health Department referred a request for comment to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Public health officers from CDC’s Houston Port Health Station worked with EMS to evaluate ill passengers on board,” a CDC spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “Most of the ill passengers reported mild GI symptoms. No passengers were noted to have a fever during the flight or upon public health assessment at landing. No passengers met CDC criteria for further public health follow-up. Passengers from the flight continued with their travel plans.”
The news comes after dozens of passengers on a Condor flight from Mauritius to Frankfurt, Germany mysteriously became sick with nausea and vomiting last month.
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.