Air hostess whose leg was broken in turbulence wins six-figure payout (2024)

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An air hostess whose leg was broken in seven places during severe turbulence has won a six-figure payout after being forced to give up her dream job.

Eden Garrity, 31, was pushing a trolley and serving passengers when the plane entered a tropical hailstorm over the Atlantic.

She was thrown to the ground and left pinned to the floor in agony when the Thomas Cook flight from Cuba to Manchester was suddenly and violently thrust 500ft upwards.

After Ms Garrity spent an hour lying on the floor, six passengers helped carry her to a row of seats, which had been cleared. She was taken to hospital upon landing in Manchester – seven hours later.

Ms Garrity needed numerous operations and intense rehabilitation, and was unable to walk for two months. She has been left with nerve damage which makes it painful to stand for long periods.

Ms Garrity, of Leigh, near Manchester, said that while she was thankful for the payout, 'it doesn't bring back what I've lost'. She added that she felt 'bitter' and resentful' that she will 'never be able to fly for work again'.

She said: 'It was the best job in the world and I feel like I've lost a piece of my personality.

'I feel lost, I've got a family and a son and it is great, but I'm very restricted in terms of what I can do. I miss making memories, seeing different countries.

'I'm 31 and I have the rest of my life ahead of me and I can't do what I want to do.'

Doctors said the impact of the plane floor during the turbulence was 'like a sledgehammer' hitting her foot.

Ms Garrity broke her fibula in five places, her tibia once, fractured the side of her foot and cracked her ankle bone.

The flight, in August 2019, had already taken a 100-mile detour to avoid adverse weather before it hit the storm.

She said she and other crew members had not been made aware of the risk of turbulence either during the journey, or at the pre-flight staff briefing.

She said: 'Usually if we're going to have some turbulence, they'll tell us before the flight and let us know what the plans are.' Ms Garrity added that before she was injured, she 'absolutely loved' her job.

She said: 'To suffer from injuries that were so severe that I literally couldn't return has been utterly heartbreaking. I suffered from depression and was diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety.'

Ms Garrity made a compensation claim via Thomas Cook's insurers, as the company went bust in 2020. The insurers denied responsibility but agreed to pay Ms Garrity an undisclosed six-figure compensation care package.

Ms Garrity revealed her ordeal days after a British man died and dozens were injured when a Singapore Airlines flight hit severe turbulence last Tuesday.

Geoff Kitchen, 73, from Thornbury near Bristol, is reported to have suffered a heart attack as the aircraft plunged 6,000ft in three minutes.

Another Briton is understood to be among five passengers still in intensive care in hospital.

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