Twenty-two flights bound for Denver International Airport on Monday were forced to divert to Colorado Springs after encountering severe weather.
KMGH-TV reported that 18 of the affected flights were domestic, and four international. Each hit significant turbulence as a cold front in the Denver area caused high winds above ground level.
According to the Colorado Springs Fire Department, first responders provided medical assistance to five passengers, each from a different airplane. One of those people was transported to a local hospital.
“We basically staged our medical teams at the airport, one on the tarmac and another at the gate as planes continued to divert so we did not have to drive back and forth as planes landed,” Colorado Springs Fire Department spokesperson Ashley Franco told CNN.
Flights into and out of Denver are often bumpy due to the airport’s location on the leeward side of the Rocky Mountains. The early morning hours are usually calmer, before daytime heating begins.
Denver International and Colorado Springs Airport both remained open through Monday.
