By Martin Shwenk Leade
In this image Ryanair passengers are seen on the aircraft’s wing while evacuating.
A false fire alert aboard a Ryanair flight to Manchester caused panic and a chaotic emergency evacuation at Palma de Mallorca Airport early Saturday, resulting in minor injuries to 18 people, according to Spanish emergency services and airline officials as reported by TOI.The incident occurred just after midnight while the aircraft was still on the runway. The evacuation was triggered by what was later confirmed to be a false fire warning. In a statement, Ryanair said, 鈥淭his flight from Palma to Manchester discontinued take-off due to a false fire warning light indication. Passengers disembarked using the inflatable slides and returned to the terminal.鈥漃assengers evacuated amid panicFollowing the alert, passengers were evacuated using emergency exits and inflatable slides. Social media footage showed several individuals climbing onto the aircraft鈥檚 wing and jumping to the tarmac, while others used the emergency slide on the opposite side of the plane.鈥 aviationbrk (@aviationbrk) Emergency services, including four ambulances, airport fire crews, and police, were deployed to the scene. A spokesperson for Majorcan emergency services said, 鈥淲e received an alert about a fire on a plane on the ground at Palma airport at 00.36 am today… Eighteen people were injured and received medical assistance, of whom six were taken to hospital. They were all minor. Three went to the Clinica Rotger and three to the Palmaplanas Hospital.鈥滾ive EventsConfusion reported among cabin crewWitnesses described confusion during the evacuation, with some passengers reporting a lack of clear instructions from flight attendants. A mother whose daughter was on the flight said, 鈥淥ne attendant shouted, 鈥楪et off鈥, the other froze and she didn鈥檛 know what was going on. She looked as shocked as the passengers,鈥 as reported by TOI.She added that her daughter called her during the evacuation in distress: 鈥淢y daughter called me and said, 鈥楳um, I鈥檓 trying to get down the slide, I might not survive this and I love you.鈥 It was horrible.鈥滱n airport employee, expressed concern over passenger behavior during the evacuation: 鈥淒o you know the plane has emergency exits? Now the people are jumping from the wing onto the ground,鈥 as reported by TOI.Flight resumed after replacement arrangedRyanair arranged a replacement aircraft which departed Palma at 07:05 AM. The airline confirmed that 鈥渁 small number of passengers encountered very minor injuries (ankle sprains, etc.)鈥 and apologised for the disruption.Airport operations resumed normally following the evacuation, and no further incidents were reported.(With inputs from TOI)(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
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(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)Read More News onRyanair flight emergencyfalse fire alertPalma de Mallorca Airport evacuationairplane emergency evacuationminor injuries Ryanair flightaircraft panic incidentemergency services responseRyanairpalmapassenger experience evacuation(Catch all the Business News, Breaking News, Budget 2025 Events and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.) Subscribe to The Economic Times Prime and read the ET ePaper online….moreless
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