Water fountain at airport closed after six passengers fall ill on flight

Jan. 2, 2019 / 12:28 PM GMT / Updated 12:46 PM GMT

By Associated Press

TAMPA, Fla. — Officials say six passengers fell ill on a Frontier Airlines flight from Cleveland to Tampa.

WFLA-TV reports health officials boarded the plane when it landed at Tampa International Airport on Tuesday afternoon and the sick passengers were removed. Officials say they are being held for observation. The sick passengers were not traveling together.

The remaining passengers were kept on the plane for about an hour after it landed. Those passengers deplaned around 4:30 p.m.

An airport representative says there is a possibility the affected passengers’ illnesses were connected to a drinking fountain. The fountains in the Frontier concourse at the airport have been shut down as a safety precaution.

Authorities haven’t provided information on the symptoms passengers were experiencing or their conditions.

Frontier said in a statement that cause of the illness remains under investigation.