Flushed dirty diaper leads to flight cancellation
United Airlines passengers on a flight from Phoenix, Arizona to Cleveland, Ohio encountered a travel roadblock when the airplane they were scheduled to board got clogged with a dirty diaper.
Rick Milligan of Bay Village, Ohio was returning home with his wife and two children after a Christmas trip to Phoenix. He told WJW Fox 8 News, “They didn’t tell us what it was right up front, but the word started slowly leaking out. I shouldn’t use that word with, ‘leaking,’ with what we’re deeming ‘diaper gate.’” Another passenger Greta Bonne traveling with her three kids said, “I don’t think anybody should be that ignorant that they would put a diaper down the toilet of an airplane.”
A spokesperson for United said that a diaper was flushed, which then backed up the toilets, leaving the lavatory unusable so the plane would not be able to take off as scheduled. No specific numbers were given of how many passengers were affected, but most were placed on alternate flights. Those passengers going straight to Cleveland were booked into hotel rooms and flew out the next morning.
While the flight cancellation was aggravating, apparently there was some factor of entertainment to the airline’s news about the situation. Milligan said with a laugh, “It was interesting updates, too. It was, ‘Well, we think we found the diaper and removed it but there’s still fabric in the plumbing,” and I couldn’t believe it.” After a reported 6-hour wait, the delayed flight was cancelled because of the ‘blockage.’
Milligan was in good spirits after returning to the Buckeye state saying, “Real happy to be home, although we looked out the window and we came from 70 degrees and it’s 20 here, but hey it’s home and that’s what counts, and looking forward to the new year.” Rick, here’s wishing you the best in 2014, and a year of blockage-free toilets.
Video and more info: WJW
