Incident Overview
According to statements from flight and cabin crew, Atlanta Approach Control advised the crew of an area of rain on the arrival route, though the flight crew did not observe any precipitation on the airborne weather radar. During the descent to 11,000 feet, the seatbelt sign was illuminated. The captain, serving as pilot monitoring, cycled the seatbelt sign and contacted the flight attendant at the 1L door via interphone to instruct the cabin crew to be seated.
Turbulence Encounter
Before the 1L flight attendant could relay the message to all flight attendants, as they were preparing the cabin for arrival, the airplane experienced several distinct jolts of turbulence. Flight data recorder data showed that as the aircraft descended through approximately 13,200 feet, vertical acceleration fluctuated between +1.56 g and +0.024 g over about 10 seconds.
Injury and Response
During the turbulence, the 4Rc flight attendant, who was in the aisle near the 3R door, was lifted into the air and fell back to the floor on her feet and knees. She was assisted to the 3R jumpseat. The flight crew was notified of the injury and requested paramedics to meet the aircraft upon arrival.
Aftermath
The injured flight attendant was transported to the hospital, where she was diagnosed with two broken ankles.