What happened
The aircraft was operating at flight level 310 while traveling between Puerto Rico and New York. During this phase of the flight, the plane encountered clear air turbulence, a phenomenon that occurs without visible meteorological signs. The severity of the disturbance caused several passengers and flight attendants to be thrown about within the cabin.
One flight attendant sustained a broken wrist as a result of the incident. Due to the injury, the flight crew decided to divert the aircraft to Bermuda. Upon arrival, the injured passengers received medical attention and were subsequently released.
The flight crew reported that they were flying through cirro-stratus clouds at the time of the occurrence. Airborne radar did not display any echoes, which is consistent with clear air turbulence being invisible to standard weather detection equipment. The captain noted in an interview that the seatbelt sign was illuminated during the event and that his standard procedure involves keeping the sign on at all times.