20 Flight Attendants Injured As Drink Cans Explode on Southwest Flights

At least 20 flight attendants have been injured in the past few months by exploding soda cans on Southwest flights, and the issue will only become worse in coming years.

Carbonated drinks contain a mixture of ingredients inside a liquid which is pumped with carbon dioxide. During extremely cold temperatures, the water inside freezes and expands, popping the can. However, in extremely hot temperatures, the carbon dioxide inside the cans separates and expands, increasing the pressure inside of the can. Most cans are designed to withhold a certain amount of pressure, but the pressure that the carbon dioxide creates can be up to five or six times the atmospheric pressure around the can. Even if the can is handled gently, the smallest bump can turn the soda can into a miniature bomb, sometimes dangerously exploding while in the hand of a person.

Southwest Airlines has had this problem for years, and it is unique to them. Since they do not serve perishable items onboard, there is no need for any sort of refrigerator in their cargo or on the plane. Due to this, drinks can become extremely hot when being stored on the tarmac or being loaded onto the plane. In addition, some of Southwest's biggest hubs are in cities that have been experiencing scorching temperatures, such as Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Dallas, and because of climate change, those areas will only become hotter in the next few years.

Exploding soda cans have injured at least 20 flight attendants this summer, with one having to get stitches. Southwest did confirm, though, that no passengers had been injured. On top of the 100+ incidents involving ruptured drink cans in June alone, heat has warped numerous cans as well, according to Southwest, and they are starting to take steps to prevent the problem in the future.

To solve the problem, Southwest has confirmed that they will start introducing air-conditioned cargo trucks at airports like Phoenix and Las Vegas. They will also implement a new procedure to measure the temperature of all soda cans, and they will refuse to bring onboard any soda cans which exceed a temperature of 98 degrees Fahrenheit (36.67 degrees Celsius). Onboard flights, flight attendants will be instructed to bring passengers their drinks from the back of the plane instead of bringing a beverage cart, and make sure not to open any cans which look warped or feel warmer than normal.