On Monday, a passenger plane landing at Toronto Pearson Airport crashed into the tarmac. As dramatic footage shared on social media showed, the Delta Air Lines plane flipped over and landed belly up with the passengers hanging upside down.
All 80 people on the plane survived the crash and were evacuated quickly from the aircraft. But, some passengers grabbed their bags as they evacuated the plane, drawing some controversy online.
After the plane stopped, the passengers were hanging upside down in their seats but were able to get themselves onto the ground and begin evacuating, per CNN.
Videos of passengers evacuating the plane show some people wearing backpacks or carrying bags and other items as they climbed out of the aircraft.
In response to the videos, some people online have commented that the passengers should not have grabbed their bags, while others understand the desire to collect their belongings.
One of the plane’s passengers, John Nelson, said flight attendants told them to grab their stuff as they left the plane, per ABC.
“You heard the flight attendants yelling, ‘Open the door. Everybody, take your stuff and get out now,’” Nelson said, according to ABC. “We all worked together and got out of there as quickly as we could.”
According to Fox News, another passenger, Pete Koukov, recorded a video as he evacuated the plane. In the video, a flight attendant can be heard saying, “Leave everything. Drop it.”
What problems can grabbing your bag in an emergency cause?
According to Fox News, Gary Leff, a travel industry expert, said that there can be problems caused when a passenger stops to grab their belongings in an evacuation.
“The problem is that slows down the process of getting out, and you don’t know whether that is going to cost lives,” Leff said.
This delay can be problematic in plane crashes because of the risk of the plane catching on fire.
“In the moment, though, passengers aren’t thinking clearly about macro consequences. They may see just what is right in front of them,” Leff added, according to Fox News.
Some people may reach for their items in order to grab something needed, such as prescription medication.
Leff said that the plane being upside down prevented people from retrieving their items from the overhead bins. Because of this, most items people grabbed were most likely near their seat, per Fox News.
Brandon Blewett, who wrote “How to Avoid Strangers on Airplanes,” said that during an aircraft evacuation people should defer to the flight crew for instruction.
“I get that people are attached to their things, and maybe they knew there was no fire risk, but I’d always err on the side of getting out first and worrying about replacing lost material items later,” said Blewett, according to Fox News.
In a YouTube video from Delta titled “Safety Video March 2024″ the airline instructs passengers, “in the event of an evacuation, leave all bags behind. Carrying baggage will slow the evacuation.”