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Eight individuals were hospitalized after experiencing intense turbulence on a JetBlue flight en route to Florida from Guayaquil, Ecuador.

As the aircraft neared Florida, passengers and crew faced “sudden severe turbulence,” the airline mentioned in a statement. Upon landing at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, medical teams attended to seven passengers and one crew member who were subsequently hospitalized.

JetBlue has since pulled the aircraft from service for a thorough inspection and expressed its commitment to assisting affected passengers and staff. The National Transportation Safety Board has announced its intent to investigate the incident.

A rise in turbulence-related injuries:
This isn’t an isolated event; turbulence-related injuries on flights have been on the rise lately. Just last month, 11 passengers required medical attention after a Delta Air Lines flight from Milan to Atlanta encountered severe turbulence. A July incident involved a Florida-bound flight rapidly descending from 18,000 feet to 13,000 feet, injuring several on board. Reflecting on the episode, passenger Paul Harris shared, “The plane felt like it dropped pretty considerably. Several people, including a lady in my row, hit the ceiling.”