United Airlines passenger with 'biohazard diarrhoea' admits mistake as flights cancelled

Daily Record

3 days ago

Meghan Reinersten has apologised after her severe episode cancelled a United Airlines flight as specialists were called to clear up her mess.
A airline passenger whose "biohazard diarrhoea" episode caused flight cancellations blamed an undercooked burger for the drama.
‌
Meghan Reinersten has apologised after her severe episode cancelled a United Airlines flight out of Indianapolis, Indiana, as specialists were called to clear up her mess.
‌
As the Mirror reports, the 29-year-old has claimed that the 90-minute explosion in the lavatory was as a result of taking a few bites of a raw burger, which sparked violent food poisoning.
‌
Speaking last night, Meghan said: "I had eaten part of an undercooked burger hours before I left to get back to Indiana. I only took a couple of bites because I was like, 'oof, that's really undercooked'." Meghan, who is a live-in nanny, said she bought the burger at the resort where she had been staying with her work family.
Meghan said she suddenly felt her "stomach was rumbling" before she boarded her final connection on her way home from a holiday in Portugal. She then experienced pain after boarding the second plane to take her from Newark, New Jersey to Indianapolis.
However, 30 minutes into the journey, she had to rush to the toilet.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Meghan said: "For the next 20 minutes I had more diarrhoea than any human should ever have in their life." Meghan said she couldn't make it back to her seat in her condition, which prompted the flight attendant to tell her through the door to "brace for impact". Once they were on the ground, she was told that the next flight with that plane had been scrapped.
The actress, from Atlanta, Georgia, recalled panicking in the tiny, claustrophobic area before she had the presence of mind to scream for help from the flight attendants, who gave her bags. The flight crew allowed her to stay in the bathroom for the entire flight. They even got special clearance from the pilot to allow her to remain where she was for landing.
‌
Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!
Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.
You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.
No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.
All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in!
If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'.
We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like.
To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Recalling the encounter further, Meghan said: "A flight attendant comes over and says, 'Everybody's off the plane now, go ahead and take your time and come out when you can, the next flight has been cancelled.' In the moment, I'm not thinking it is because of me." The flight attendant then told her that a hazmat team would be coming to clean up her mess.
"Got it, so you cancelled that flight because of me...because you don't know if I brought something back from Portugal. And I am a biohazard. I am patient zero."
Last month, Meghan went public about the ordeal via TikTok. She told how the experience happened in July 2024 but found it so embarrassing she has struggling with travel since then. The clip was viewed more than 20 million times on Meghan's TikTok account.