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DENVER — A Delta Air Lines flight from Boston to Salt Lake City was diverted to Denver Friday night due to severe weather and turbulence that did visible damage to the plane, officials said.
Delta Flight 1889, which departed Boston at 5:30 p.m. local time Friday, was diverted while in the air, according to Laura Coale, media relations representative for Denver International Airport.
The flight landed safely in Denver around 8:30 p.m. local time, Coale said. While in Denver, one person was transported to a local hospital at their own request, she said.
Passengers did eventually arrive in Salt Lake City early Saturday morning. KSL News caught up with some of them, and they described a quick but intense storm. Many said it started to rain, then there was hail and lightening.
"It was mostly thunder flashes out there and (the plane was) jerking and stuff," passenger Oscar Rhett said. "You heard the hail on top of the plane. It was really loud."
"All of a sudden we went 'Woof!' passenger Robin Jones said, gesturing her hands downward to show the movement of the plane. "But it wasn't like ... (we got) a lot of turbulence. To me it just felt like one huge, just, drop and then come back up."
Another passenger who took photos of the damage said the pilot then reported the windshield was cracked and that they needed to land as a precaution.
The windshield and nose cone of the plane were damaged by the hail, according to ABC News. Passenger Rob Wessman said passengers were holding hands and crying.
"I was nervous," Wessman said. "I was messaging my wife, actually. 'Hey, this is pretty scary.'"
Jones told KSL News she's a frequent flier, and this was the scariest flight she's ever been on. She's praising the pilot and crew for how well they handled this scary situation.
