Paramedic aboard flipped plane at Toronto Pearson recounts urgent rescue as jet fuel poured into cabin [Video]

Michael Nolan arrived at the airport early to pick up his old friend Peter Carlson on Monday, so he decided to pull up to the fence just beyond Runway 23 and pass the time watching planes land.

The two veteran paramedics had met at a conference about 10 years previous and were eager to reunite at a paramedicine expo in Toronto this week. As first vice-president of the Ontario Association of Paramedic Chiefs and the chief paramedic for Renfrew County, Mr. Nolan was co-chairing the event, while his old friend, who works in Minnesota, was scheduled to give a talk.

Over the years, they had bonded over tales of calamity from their respective countries. Never did they expect to share roles in one such disaster: the crash landing of Delta 4819 at Toronto Pearson International Airporton Monday afternoon. The flight from Minneapolis carried 76 passengers and four crew members. …