Sixty-six injured passengers from an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 that crashed while landing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) Saturday morning were sent to San Francisco General Hospital for treatment, hospital spokesperson Rachael Kagan said. Hospital staff are expecting to treat additional passengers with less serious injuries, she said.
Out of the 66 patients, there were 35 adults and 31 children, Kagan said. Three were considered in critical condition including one child.
At a news conference outside the hospital Sunday, Doctor Margaret Knudson, chief of surgery, said that some patients were unconscious and two people treated at the hospital are paralyzed.
On Saturday Chief of Emergency Medicine Chris Barton said that patients suffered trauma to the head, burns, spinal and chest injuries and broken bones.
“Some of them are in shock,” Barton said referring to patients. “Overall it’s amazing how most of them are coping.”
Tents were set up outside the hospital emergency building Saturday afternoon to accomodate emergency patients and to care for additional patients from the crash whose injuries may not require trauma level care, Kagan explained. San Francisco General Hospital is the only trauma center in San Francisco.
Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Laura Brown said Flight 214 crashed while landing at SFO at 11:26 a.m. Saturday. Two people died in the plane crash and nearly 50 were critically injured, SFO officials said.
Updated at 3:38 p.m. Wednesday July 10.
Was Gary Don Aldridge a passenger? I’m his father!
He made contact w/ me, but thanks for being there.