KENNER, La. — Passengers say they saw the man open the emergency door on a Southwest flight Sunday evening. According to passengers he just opened the door and jumped out.
According to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's office, a 38-year-old Atlanta man on a Southwest flight leaving Louis Armstrong Intentional Airport allegedly escaped through the emergency hatch and ran out onto the tarmac.
Zed Webster was sitting in the emergency row, across from the man who allegedly opened the exit door. Via Zoom, he told WWL Louisiana the man, "Just opened the door and got out."
He went on to say, "Right after the flight attendant had asked us if we were willing to assist in the event of an emergency the guy that actually lifted up the lever, he was the first one to say yes."
He says he started recording when he heard the man arguing with the passenger next to him. That video was posted to TikTok and has since had millions of views. Webster says when the man opened the emergency exit door, he jumped down off the plane and ran across the tarmac.
Webster said, "We don't expect to be in that type of situation, we were hyperventilating, women were having asthma attacks, I didn't stop shaking for a while."
JPSO Deputies were called to Concourse B around 7:40 p.m., on Sunday. The office says the plane was stationary and had not yet left the gate. When deputies made contact with the man, they found he was incoherent and not fully aware of his surroundings, and was transported to the hospital.
Another passenger who asked us not to use their name said he initially thought someone was having a medical emergency, saying, "Next thing I know somebody says 'Oh, my God! There's someone on the wing.'"
The passenger went on to say, "Me towards the back of the plane I was kinda thinking oh shoot, it's going to be a little bit before I get up, so if anything were to happen I might as well say my prayers."
They said once the passenger was out, chaos ensued. "People start freaking out. Some people are screaming, it's chaos at this point."
Southwest Airlines issued a statement, which reads, "We commend our flight and ground crews for their swift action and apologize to our Customers for their inconvenience."
JPSO said there was no indication the man left anything on the plane and wasn't found with any weapons.
JPSO believed the man was experiencing a mental health emergency and is still in hospital. He is not expected to face any criminal charges locally, however, the investigation has been referred to federal authorities. No one was injured during the incident.