In Daegu, South Korea, a passenger was arrested after the Asiana Airlines Airbus A321 landed safely Friday, even though he opened an emergency cabin door shortly before the airplane touched down. He partially opened the door despite attempts to stop him, according to South Korea’s Transport Ministry. In a statement released by the ministry, airport police said they detained the person on suspicion of violating aviation security laws. Neither the person’s identity nor motive was immediately revealed, but local media reported that he was a large man appearing to be in his 30s, CBS News reported. The ministry said that a passenger who handles exit doors or other equipment on board can be sentenced to 10 years in prison. This flight was en route from Jeju, a southern South Korean island, to Daegu, which is about a one-hour flight. The plane was carrying 194 passengers and six crew members, and the incident occurred when the aircraft was approaching Daegu airport at an altitude of only 700 feet.
Someone posted a video on social media of passengers’ hair being whipped by the wind coming through the open door, according to CBS News. The incident unnerved 48 teenagers heading to a national track and field meet for under-15s that starts Saturday in Daegu. Ten of them were members of a judo team. In the case of eight athletes and one coach evaluated at a hospital, no major injuries were reported, an Jeju Sports Council official told CBS News, adding that the Red Cross offered counseling for any children who were upset. While there has yet to be a decision as to whether the club will participate in the weekend event, an official said that it seemed unlikely considering the children’s young ages, with the youngest being only 9 or 10 years old, and the trauma inflicted by the inflight incident.
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Other passengers told the Yonhap news agency they suffered from severe ear pain after the door opened. It reported that some cabin crew shouted to passengers to prevent the door from opening. There were at least 12 people taken to hospitals for medical treatment or evaluation as a result of the accident, according to officials at the Transportation Ministry. The injured people suffered mainly breathing issues and other minor symptoms, said emergency officials in Daegu. In this instance, the incident occurred shortly before landing, so the flight crew had already instructed all passengers to fasten their seatbelts by the time the incident occurred.
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