Turbulence injures eight on Avianca flight that was forced to divert to MIA

Eight people were taken to Miami hospitals early Friday morning after a flight to New York City was forced to divert to Miami International Airport due to severe turbulence, according to officials.

According to officials at Miami International Airport, Avianca Flight 42 was headed from Medellín, Colombia, to New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport when the severe turbulence was reported.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue said the flight landed safely at MIA around 3:30 a.m. According to MDFR, eight people were injured, with one of those needing to be brought to a trauma center.

However, airline officials told CBS News Miami that nine people – three crew members and six passengers – were hurt.

One passenger who was at Miami International Airport when the Avianca flight was arriving said she saw several ambulances waiting to help treat those who were injured.

“When we arrived, when we landed, we saw that very close to where we were going to disembark, there were more than five or six ambulances. Seven of them with their lights on as if they were waiting for something,” passenger Maria Paula Jimenez told CBS News Miami in Spanish. “When we arrived, well, you know, it wasn’t normal.”

Avianca officials said that the remaining passengers were being assisted by the airline’s airport team to make necessary arrangements to continue their journey to New York City.

The Federal Aviation Administration told CBS News Miami that the agency would be investigating the incident.

The extent of the injuries is unknown.