Passengers on a flight started coughing after a man accidentally discharged pepper spray on board the plane that was preparing to take off but then the flight – from Florida to New Jersey in the US – was delayed after the incident happened.
The plane for United Flight 1061 was preparing to take off from Southwest Florida International Airport when the passenger accidentally deployed the pepper spray on their key chain.
The man carrying the pepper spray was able to board the plane after the transportation safety administration (TSA) agents missed it during pre-check.
Fellow passenger Joseph Grande told Fox 4 that the plane was already in motion when everyone around him started coughing. “Everybody started coughing, and during COVID everybody starts looking around. I grabbed my mask,” he said.
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The reason why everyone started coughing a few moments later. “One of the gentlemen in the exit row, which was like two rows in front of me to my left, was like oh, I accidentally hit this thing on my key chain,” said Grande.
The passengers were given the option to get off the plane. Grande’s fiancé has asthma and they didn’t want to risk it.
“She was still coughing, I still felt it. I was like, this isn’t going away. So that’s when we decided to hop off,” he said.
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According to TSA, pepper spray is not permitted in carry-on bags. TSA agents at the airport were given a refresher course to ensure they can spot them in the future.
