A man recalled the moment when he was on a New York-bound flight from Los Angeles and learned that the plane made an emergency landing due to a passenger infested with lice.
Ethan Judelson,28, shared his experience in a TikTok video detailing how the American Airlines flight made a pit stop in Phoenix after another passenger informed the flight crew about the lice infestation. While speaking to PEOPLE, Judelson said the incident occurred in June, and the remaining passengers had to wait 12 hours before continuing their flight to New York. “Right when we landed in Phoenix, we got an email saying, ‘Here’s your voucher for the hotel.’ And we’re like, ‘Hotel? Are we staying here?'” he explained. He said the airline only provided a $12 voucher and wasn’t sure why the plane made the emergency landing but learned about the lice issue the following day.
While waiting in the TSA line, he heard other passengers talking about the incident. They said the woman with lice in her hair was avoiding questions at the gate. “Apparently, those two girls saw bugs crawling out of the woman’s hair and alerted the flight attendant,” Judelson recounted in his video.
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When the passengers reboarded, Judelson stated he was unsure who was aware of the lice and who was still unaware of it.
American Airlines said in a statement to the outlet that the incident occurred “on June 15, American Airlines flight 2201 from Los Angeles (LAX) to New York (JFK) diverted to Phoenix (PHX) due to the medical needs of a customer.” They didn’t disclose any further details.