250 Passengers Stranded Aboard Airplane in Frigid Labrador for 16 Hours

United Flight 179 from Newark, N.J., to Hong Kong was diverted to the Goose Bay Airport on the night of Jan. 19 after a passenger experienced a medical emergency, according to United Airlines spokeswoman Natalie Noonan. She said that after the passenger was removed from the plane and taken to hospital, a mechanical issue with the plane’s door prevented the aircraft from taking off. Noonan believes the door was unable to be shut because it likely froze in the wintry temperatures. Noonan said passengers weren’t able to get off the plane because there were no border officials working overnight.

A Dreamliner 787-10 arriving from Los Angeles pulls up to a gate in Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, N.J., on Jan. 7, 2019. Seth Wenig/File Photo via AP

HAPPY VALLEY-GOOSE BAY, N.L.—An end is finally in sight for passengers who spent 16 gruelling hours on a plane grounded on a tarmac in frigid Happy Valley-Goose Bay, N.L., though a passenger was left frustrated by the experience and wondering why it took so long to get help.

“You’re cold, you’re tired, you’re hungry,” said Sonjay Dutt, a professional wrestler who was travelling to an event in China.