A COUPLE claim they are now stuck in a foreign country, sharing a room with strangers because their WizzAir plane engine caught fire.
Steve Fludder and Emma Bradley were both 39 years old, having just spent a week in Bulgaria. When they returned to the UK, they had to fly home.
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Steve says that their WizzAir flight was barely able to get off the ground before hitting a flock birds. The plane engine burst into flames and came to a stop on the runway.
They are now trapped in a country in the southeastern European region, where they sleep on the floors of random hotels, trying to return home to Lancashire.
Steve, owner of PCW wrestling, had booked a last-minute holiday through Love Holidays (a budget-friendly travel agency).
Although the holiday was not perfect, the 39 year-old explained that the holidays took a terrible turn when they had to leave on Tuesday morning.
Steve said to Manchester Evening News, “We were about ready to take off. The plane nose had just lifted a bit and then it hit a flock.
“Not one bird, but a large flock of birds and the engine burst in flames.
“There were flames coming off the back of the engine and then the brakes hit like there was no tomorrow so it was like the biggest whiplash jolt ever. It was crazy.”
Steve claimed that Emma, he, and 150 other passengers were shuffled back to the airport, where they waited for hours, before being informed that the flight had been cancelled.
The couple waited to find out their next steps and were told two hours later by WizzAir staff that the earliest possible flight home was on October 8.
Steve said that the gravity and urgency of the situation became apparent when he realized with the others that they would have to decide where to stay.
He claimed that the airline staff initially said they would find everyone lodging, but then they said they might not be able to.
Within six hours, Emma and Steve were at their hotel in Romania, with no rooms.
Steve stated that “it was only after 11.30pm, having watched our group cry for an hour, when the lovely manager of hotel found us an outof-service area.
“It wasn’t used, it was not a nice space.
“But they still gave me that room and gave me some food. They also gave us leftovers from the restaurant, so I had cold food.
“The night spent in the hotel room was terrible, I feel like I was being lied on the ground.
“I’m a big guy, I’m not really built for laying on the ground with a towel for a pillow.”
Steve claims that Emma, Steve and four others shared the room until they can get home on a plane.
We don’t want the world and we didn’t ask for it.
Steve Fludder
He claimed that this was what prompted him into contacting WizzAir. They claim they couldn’t help him.
Steve said that he asked about accommodation, and was informed that passengers would need to pay for their own rooms.
He stated, “I told them that they needed to help us, and she was like, “No, no, I cannot help, I can only make reservations.”
“This is WizzAir’s emergency contact number. What can we do?
“WizzAir should have given the hotel food. That’s the airline’s duty, it’s passenger duty of care.
“We’re not asking for the world, we didn’t ask to be stranded.”
Steve stated that “My partner has absolutely crumbled in mental health, this is why we came out, we go on holiday to have a break.”
“You can just see she’s someone who is just worn out by anxiety, I just want to hug her and everything but what can you do – this has ruined the whole experience really.”
Steve said he does not know when he will be home, but claimed that he was told there might be an opportunity for his party to board a plane to Liverpool.
Central Recorder reached out to WizzAir and Love Holidays for comments.
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