Delta passengers suffer from earaches and nosebleeds due to pressure problems in the cabin

• Delta Flight 1203 was diverted to Salt Lake City on Sunday, September 15, after the aircraft “could not be pressurized.”
• After the incident on a Boeing 737-900 aircraft, 10 passengers required medical assistance
• Passengers recalled severe earaches and nosebleeds due to the pressure problem

Several passengers were injured when a Delta plane bound for Portland experienced a cabin pressure problem during flight.

An airline spokesperson confirmed to PEOPLE that Delta Flight 1203 returned to its departure destination of Salt Lake City on Sunday, September 15, after “the aircraft was unable to repressurize at an altitude above 10,000 feet.”

The Boeing 737-900 was carrying 140 passengers and “oxygen masks were not deployed during the incident.” At least 10 people required medical evaluation or treatment and were met by paramedics when the plane returned to Salt Lake City, according to the airline.

The passengers described the horrific experience in an interview with KSL TV on Monday, September 16.

“I looked over at my husband and he had both hands over his ears, you know, he was kind of hunched over,” recalled passenger Caryn Allen. “I looked about a row behind me, across the aisle, and there was a gentleman sitting there who obviously had a very bad nosebleed and people were trying to help him.”

Jaci Purser, another passenger on the flight, said: “I touched my ear, pulled my hand back and there was blood on it.”

The outlet reports that Purser “felt like someone had stabbed her in the ear” before realizing she was bleeding. She also felt a popping sound in her ear followed by a bubbling sound.

Allen added, “They finally announced we were returning to the airport and still didn't say why,” after passengers felt the plane drop and begin circling the Great Salt Lake.

A Delta spokesman said the airline would cover the cost of transporting passengers to the hospital.

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“We sincerely apologize to our customers for their experience on Flight 1203 on September 15,” the airline said in a statement released to PEOPLE. “The flight crew followed procedures to return to SLC, where our teams on the ground assisted our customers with their immediate needs.”

They also noted that the aircraft was “taken out of service on the morning of September 15 and returned to service on September 16” after Delta technicians successfully fixed the pressure issue.