When a Southwest Airlines jet suffered an explosion, resulting in a broken window that almost sucked a woman out of the plane, many of the passengers wrote on social media to their loved ones that this might be their final moments; one man, Marty Martinez, paid $8 for WiFi so that he could say goodbye to his loved ones on Facebook Live.
What happened?
Martinez had been sitting a few rows away from Jennifer Riordan, the woman who had nearly been sucked out of the window who, unfortunately, ultimately lost her life.
Fortunately, pilot Tammie Jo Shults contacted air traffic control and managed to perform an emergency landing in Philadephia, while the plane was flying from New York to Dallas. Riordan is believed to have been the only casualty of the incident, with early reports saying that she had died of a heart attack.
Who is Marty Martinez?
Martinez, who was 29 years old at the time of the incident and worked as a digital marketing entrepreneur, paid $8 for WiFi so that he could contact his loved ones as the plane was going down.
In a video uploaded to Facebook Live, seen above, Martinez wrote the following caption:
“Something is wrong with our plane! It appears we are going down! Emergency landing! Southwest flight from NYC to Dallas!!”
“Flight 1380 From NYC to Dallas crash landed in Philly. Engine exploded in the air and blew open window 3 seats away from me. Explosion critically injured woman sitting in the seat next to the window. Oxygen masked deployed.”“I literally bought WiFi as the plane was going down because I wanted to be able to reach the people I loved…thinking these were my final moments on earth.”
“And put in a position to have to prioritize the people I loved to send them my final words was an absolutely gut wrenching feeling. So I thought to Facebook LIVE my experience, thinking this would be my last communication with the people I loved and my team back home.”
“Just found out the woman on the flight who was injured didn’t make it. My thoughts and prayers are with her family. I feel very lucky to be alive.”
According to The Toronto Star, Martinez gave a firsthand account of what happened, including witnessing Riordan being injured during the incident:
“A man was helping — there was blood all over him. She made no noise at all. I could see the blood all over that gentleman’s hands.”
“It was only when we had hit the ground and you could tell the plane was slowing down — there just a sign of relief and cheers across the plane. Everyone was just so grateful to be alive.”
“I want you to know that I love you all and thank you for all that you’ve done. I’m so sorry!! Planes going down. I love you guys!”