About 10 sick passengers were treated after an Emirates flight from Dubai landed in New York City Wednesday morning, the airline said.
The plane was kept away from the terminal at John F. Kennedy airport as authorities investigated reports of sick passengers.
Statement: Emirates can confirm that about 10 passengers on #EK203 from Dubai to New York were taken ill. On arrival, as a precaution, they were attended to by local health authorities. All others will disembark shortly. The safety & care of our customers is our first priority.
— Emirates Airline (@emirates) September 5, 2018
Emirates Airlines Flight EK203 landed safely at John F. Kennedy airport Wednesday morning. The pilot reported that two male passengers have extremely high fevers and about 100 passengers are "coughing non-stop," preliminary information indicates.
BREAKING: An Emirates A380 in quarantine at JFK Airport right now awaiting CDC officials after about 100 passengers became ill with fevers over 100 degrees and coughing. Flight 203 had just arrived from Dubai. pic.twitter.com/lyUgNbMaEW
— Sam Sweeney (@SweeneyABC) September 5, 2018
Emirates flight 203 had declared a medical emergency and landed in New York at 9:10 a.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.
"Emirates can confirm that about 10 passengers on #EK203 from Dubai to New York were taken ill. On arrival, as a precaution, they were attended to by local health authorities. All others will disembark shortly. The safety & care of our customers is our first priority," the airline tweeted.
The plane was quarantined after it landed and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was at the scene, said New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio's press secretary, Eric Phillips.
"Flight started in Dubai and stopped in Mecca, which is experiencing a flu outbreak. Early indications point to that as a POSSIBILITY. More to come," Phillips tweeted, adding that ambulances were on hand to transport people.
A total of 521 passengers were on board, sources told ABC News.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey declined to discuss the matter further as the situation is ongoing.
