BALTIMORE — Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark Andrews helped a woman who was having a mid-flight emergency on a Southwest Airlines flight from Baltimore to Phoenix, Arizona Thursday morning, according to the Ravens.
In a statement to WJZ, the Ravens confirmed that it was Andrews on the plane and included a quote from Andrews: “In addition to the fast-acting flight attendants, the real heroes are the nurse and doctor who also happened to be on the plane. Thankfully, they were able to provide the woman the quick assistance she needed.”
The scary moments were detailed in a thread posted on X, formerly Twitter, by user Andrew Springs (@NaturalSprings).
WJZ spoke with Springs in a Zoom interview on Thursday.
Springs, who is from Baltimore, recounted everything he posted about on social media. The posts went viral quickly.
“I learned that passenger is in and out of consciousness to some degree and is not really being responsive,” Springs said.
“She has a nurse on the left and the doctor on the right and I’m just basically behind her one seat to the left… and then, Mark pipes up. Well, first of all, I didn’t even know it was Mark. I had no idea he was sitting next to me.”
Springs told WJZ that Mark Andrews, the star tight end for the Ravens, was sitting just one seat over from him for hours and he didn’t realize it.
“He (Andrews) basically says, do you know, could her blood sugar be low? I have a diabetic test kit. So, Mark reached under his seat, pulled out his diabetic test kit,” said Springs.
Andrews was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was nine years old. Last year, he attended Camp Charm City at Johns Hopkins some of his time with children who were given the same diagnosis. Andrews said he wanted to show them that their diagnosis won’t prevent them from doing anything they want to do in life.
Springs said that after using the test kit, the crew brought the woman some orange juice and she was able to drink some of it. The woman was able to walk with help off the plane when it landed in Phoenix.
“It was touch and go there. This could’ve been a very different story depending on the outcome. Obviously, I’m very relieved, very thrilled she’s okay,” Springs said.
In Springs’ first tweet, he wrote, “A woman on my @southwest flight from Baltimore to Phoenix this morning had a mid-flight medical emergency. The doctor and nurse attending to her couldn’t find a strong pulse, her blood pressure was extremely low, and required oxygen to breathe. It was genuinely scary. (1/3)”
He then posted a second tweet that said, “A man in the aisle seat popped up, “Could it be her blood sugar? I have a diabetic testing kit”. It was Ravens TE Mark Andrews. Andrews instructed the medical professionals (equal citizen heroes in this story) on using his test kit. Eventually her heart rate stabilized. (2/3)”
In Springs’ third tweet, he detailed how the incident ended: “Paramedics met the flight as soon as we landed. Andrews deplaned quietly. No fanfare. As he has done his whole career, he stepped up in a huge moment when people needed him most. Watching complete strangers spring into action to help save someone’s life is truly amazing. (3/3)”
“Medical personnel responded to Flight 485 once it arrived in Phoenix from Baltimore this morning. Because of Customer privacy policies we are not able to share additional details, though as always, we are appreciative of the efforts of our Crew, medical personnel, and fellow Customers who assist others during these inflight situations,” Southwest Airlines said in a statement to WJZ.
“There’s this strong, silent type and this quiet leadership where it’s like what can I do to help? I think that’s just who he is and it’s col to see outside of the football field, but at the same time, we all kind of know, that’s just who Mark is,” said Springs.
He went on to add, “In that moment, I kind of looked at him and went, this is why this man is a role model for so many people.”
Andrews played in the AFC Championship game against the Kansas City Chiefs on January 28th, two months after having surgery on his left ankle.
Andrews’ return came after he beat the odds of what was first thought to be a season-ending injury on November 16th.
