Passengers end up with bloody noses, broken ear drums on faulty Delta flight

Passengers suffered bloody noses, broken ear drums, and "stabbing" pain on a Delta Air Lines flight when the plane failed to pressurize on Sunday morning.

When the aircraft — which was carrying 140 passengers as it headed to Portland from Salt Lake City — reached 10,000 feet, it was immediately clear that something was wrong.

"I looked over at my husband, and he had both of his hands over his ears, you know, kind of leaning forward," one passenger said, via KSL TV5. "I looked about a row behind me, over on the other side of the aisle, and there was a gentleman that clearly had a very bad bloody nose, and people were trying to help him."

"I grabbed my ear, and I pulled my hand back, and there was blood on it," said another passenger, Jaci Purser. She said she felt a stabbing pain inside her ear, and then a pop, before she noticed that it was bleeding.

Pilots quickly declared an emergency, turned the plane around, and returned to the airport at Salt Lake City, where paramedics treated at least 10 passengers.

From KSL TV5:

The plane landed at 8:30 a.m., where paramedics were waiting for the injured. Delta Air Lines told KSL TV 10 people were evaluated or treated by paramedics.

Purser said the airline paid for a Lyft ride to the hospital.

"They said, if you're bleeding, we would recommend you go to the hospital," Purser said.

Purser was diagnosed with a ruptured eardrum. She said paramedics gave her antibiotic drops to prevent infection, steroids, decongestants, and nose spray.

"It sounds like I'm underwater when I talk," Purser said. "My hearing is so bad right now."

"We sincerely apologize to our customers for their experience on flight 1203 on Sept. 15. The flight crew followed procedures to return to SLC where our teams on the ground supported our customers with their immediate needs," the airline said in a statement via KSL TV5. "Medical personnel met the flight at the gate and identified 10 individuals as needing evaluation or treatment.

"Delta offered to cover transportation for these customers to medical facilities. Delta technicians worked the pressurization issue on the aircraft successfully. It was taken out of service on the morning of Sept. 15 and went back into service on Sept. 16."

Previously: Two Delta planes collided while taxiing, knocking off the smaller one's tail (video)