
Delta Passenger Speaks Out After Plane Crashes and Flips Upside Down at Toronto Airport
President Trump Confirms No Survivors In American Airlines Plane Crash
John Nelson is grateful to be alive after surviving the crash landing in Toronto.
A Delta airlines aircraft flying in from Minneapolis, Minnesota crashed landed and flipped upside down as it arrived at Toronto Pearson International Airport on Feb. 17. Fortunately, all 80 passengers aboard were able to escape with some suffering minor injuries.
John, who recorded the aftermath of the incident, said it was a âtypical flightâ until the plane made landfall.
âComing in, it was routine,â John said during a Jan. 17 interview with CNN. âBut it was noticeable that the runways were in a weird condition. And when we hit the ground, and the plane went sideways, we skidded on our sides and ended on our backs.â
âWhen we got finished, we were upside down,â he continued. âThankfully, everybody was okay, but we tried to get out of there as quickly as possible. Shortly after I filmed the video there was another explosion, but the firefighters were there.â
John was one of the 76 passengers and four crew members on Delta Flight 4819.
As seen in videos posted on social media, the plane lands on the runway before hitting the ground and being surrounded by a plume of black smoke, subsequently turning completely upside down. In total, 18 people suffered injuries and three were transported to medical facilities, NBC News reported.
Summing up the incident, John described the scene as âmass chaosâ as everyone quickly evacuated the plane at the orders of the first responders, fearing the worst as they smelled jet fuel.
GEOFF ROBINS/AFP via Getty Images
âI was upside down,â he said. âA lady next to me was upside down, and we let ourselves go and fell and hit the ceiling. Which was a surreal feeling, and everybody was like, âGet out, get out get out.ââ
Amid the emotional experience, John explained that he still felt tense after escaping the jet.
âStressed, nervous, shaky,â he told CNN of his emotions. âStill a lot of stress. Itâs amazing that weâre still here. period Hope to not do that again.â
In the incidentâs aftermath, John filmed himself getting off the aircraft with the help of first responders, sharing his first look at the plane from the outside.
“We just landed,â he said in his video shared to Facebook. âOur plane crashed. It’s upside down.â In his clip, John reiterates that “most people appear to be okay.â
The cause of the crash is being investigated by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, according to the FAA.
Additionally, Deltaâs CEO Ed Bastian shared a message for those involved in the incident.
“The hearts of the entire global Delta family are with those affected by today’s incident at Toronto-Pearson International Airport,” Ed said in a statement to NBC News Jan 17. “I want to express my thanks to the many Delta and Endeavor team members and the first responders on site.”
(E! and NBC News are a part of NBCUniversal family.)
Keep reading for more who’ve opened up about experiencing frightening accidents…
Maddie Aldridge
Jamie Lynn Spears’ daughter, then 8, was driving an ATV when she accidentally flipped it into a pond near their Louisiana home, leaving her submerged under water for minutes. She was hospitalized for several days.
Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty Images
Jimmy Fallon
The Tonight Show host almost lost his finger after he tripped and fell in his own home. He tried catching himself on the counter and his ring got stuck on the way down, pulling his finger out. He described it as “ring avulsion,” and it kept him in the hospital for 10 days to prevent from having to get it amputated.Â
Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney
Ellen DeGeneres
The talks how host had a couple glasses of wine during a dinner party and ended up tripping over the front steps into her home. The result? She had to go to the hospital for dislocating her finger.
Todd Williamson/NBC
Jeremy Renner
On New Years’ Day 2023, the Avengers star was using a snowplow to tow a truck that was stuck in the snow on his driveway, but after exiting the machine, he was pulled under while trying to stop the plow from hitting his nephew and suffered 38 broken bones. Looking back on the ordeal, Jeremy later wrote that he was “f–king BLESSED to take my next step, to take MY NEXT BREATH.”
Olbaldo Medina/EPA/Shutterstock
Enrique Iglesias
In 2015, the singer was performing at the Plaza de Toros de Playa in Tijuana, Mexico, as part of his Sex and Love world tour when a drone used to capture photos hovered near him. He grabbed it and some of his fingers were sliced, leaving him a bloody mess.
Focus/Everett/Shutterstock
Channing Tatum
The actor suffered a horrible accident while filming The Eagle several years ago. They filmed in Scotland and had to do some scenes in a freezing river, so a crewmember suggested pouring hot water in his wetsuit to help get through it. However, someone accidentally handed him one of the boiling bottles of water that ended up leaving his penis completely burned and skinless. “I’m peeing and my shriveled burnt penisâŠI was like, ‘Why God?! Why did you do this to me?'” Tatum recalled of the rough time.
Andrew J Cunningham/Getty Images
Tori Spelling
The former Beverly Hills, 90210 star tripped and fell at the Japanese restaurant Benihana, burning her right arm on one of the Hibachi grills. She ended up suing the restaurant after reportedly undergoing skin grafts from the injury.
SBM/Plux/Shutterstock
Orlando Bloom
The actor was paralyzed for four days after he fell from a three-story building when he was 21 years old. He had been climbing a rooftop terrace with friends when the drainpipe he was scaling collapsed. The fall broke several vertebrae in his back.
Amy Sussman/Getty Images
Brad Pitt
The actor played Achilles in the 2004 film, Troy. Oddly enough, he injured his Achilles tendon on-set, which postponed filming for months.
Watch E! News weeknights Monday through Thursday at 11 p.m., only on E!.