Mother, six kids thrown off flight over toddler not wearing mask despite airline's exemption for small children
A mother from Brooklyn, who was traveling with her six children, was kicked off a JetBlue flight in Florida on Wednesday, August 19, because her two-year-old daughter was not wearing a mask, reports state. The woman, identified as Chaya Bruck, said that she was ordered to get off the flight despite her repeated attempts to explain that she would try to get her daughter to wear the mask. Bruck said that the child had not worn a mask at the moment because she had believed the little girl was exempt.
Other passengers on the flight also tried to defend the mother. However, when the toddler did not cooperate, all passengers were asked by flight attendants to deboard the aircraft, according to New York Daily News. The other passengers were later allowed on the plane while Bruck stayed in the airport with her kids. After the "traumatizing" experience, Bruck told the outlet that she remained stranded in Florida on the afternoon of August 19 and her husband has now threatened to sue the airline.
The mother-of-six said that she was traveling back to New York City through a Newark-bound flight from Orlando when she was asked by flight attendants to leave the plane along with her family because her youngest child had not worn a mask. Bruck argued that all of her other five children were wearing masks except Dina who was too young to wear one. She said: "It was horrible, the whole experience was traumatizing. I was trying very hard...(The other children) were wearing their masks with their noses covered. It says (on JetBlue's website) that a child who cannot wear a mask does not have to wear a mask. I tried to tell them this, but they didn't care... They wanted me off the plane."
WATCH IT: Family thrown off @JetBlue flight for 2-year-old not wearing mask; when the mother stated she would force the toddler to wear a mask, there were still required to deplane pic.twitter.com/6s7AZqSHd7
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) August 19, 2020
"I wasn't making any trouble," she added. "Why did we have to experience such a thing?... I am a woman flying alone with six children... They didn't care." Bruck claimed that the incident occurred because of a flight attendant from her earlier flight with her children 10 days ago to Orlando. She said that one of the attendants on the first flight had argued with her about Dina not wearing a face covering, and the same attendant was also on Wednesday's flight. "The minute he saw me today, he recognized me," Bruck said. "I heard him tell the other stewardesses about me. They came over to me and told me my daughter was 3 years old. I told them she's 2... I know how old my child is, she's going to be 3 in September."
Several angry passengers on the flight filmed the incident on their cellphone cameras. One of the videos showed Bruck pleading to the staff through tears to allow her to remain on the plane with her children as she told them she will try to keep the mask on her daughter. She can be heard telling a stewardess: "I can try... you do realize she's two." The stewardess responds, saying: "I do and also it's not something that we can excuse." To which Bruck says: "So what should I do? Should I hold her hands?" as she attempts to put the mask on the crying two-year-old. The staff, however, tells her that it is too late and she has to leave the flight.
"I paid for this flight, these are my seats and I have six kids, I'm not gonna go anywhere," Bruck tells the staff. An argument ensues between her and the staff as passengers ask them to "leave her alone!" Bruck, while recalling her ordeal, told the outlet: "(The other passengers) were sticking up for me... All of my kids were crying. I was shaking... It was inhumane."
After all the passengers were ordered to get off the plane, Bruck, in another video, was heard arguing that the JetBlue website said a child too young to wear a mask is exempt. The airline employee, however, claims: "It doesn't say that." To which Bruck claps back, saying: "Yes, it does!"
JetBlue website, earlier on August 19, stated "small children who are not able to maintain a face covering are exempt from this requirement." The airline, however, updated its website policy at 2 pm that same day, less than an hour after Bruck's flight had been scheduled to take off, according to the outlet. The update stated that "all travelers 2 years and older must wear a face covering over their nose and mouth throughout their journey."