THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, June 7, 1994 TAG: 9406070355
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: D6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KAREN E. QUINONES MILLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: 940607 LENGTH: NORFOLK
But there was no smoke, no fire and no injuries, airline officials said. However, the crew discharged fire-extinguishing chemicals in the cargo hold as a precaution.
{REST} The passengers on the Boeing 747 were getting ready to watch the movie ``The Pelican Brief'' when the pilot announced he was about to land in Norfolk around 11:30 a.m..
``I didn't smell any smoke, and I wouldn't have known something was wrong if the pilot hadn't announced it,'' said passenger Jack Morris of Toronto. ``A couple of people started crying, but mostly everybody remained calm.''
The pilot refused to be interviewed, but Air Canada spokeswoman Nicole Couture-Simard said by telephone from Montreal there was no indication why the warning light went on.
After about five hours of waiting, the passengers boarded the jet and headed not to Jamaica, but back to Toronto so new fire-extinguishing material could be loaded.
Several passengers seemed unfamiliar with Norfolk. One, Ken Jackson of Toronto, wanted to know how close Norfolk was to Baltimore, the only Southern city he had visited.
``Is it in driving distance?'' Jackson asked. ``Do people here travel there to do their shopping?''
Morris and other passengers complained that they could not make telephone calls to let friends and relatives know they were delayed. This was because they had not been cleared by U.S. Customs agents and were confined to an area that had no telephones.
Naomi and Michael Roberts were married Sunday and were heading to Jamaica on their honeymoon. They gave a resigned laugh when they were told they were on their way back to Toronto.
``What a trip this has been,'' the bride said. ``What a way to start married life.''
by CNB