Lorelei Loveridge, a teacher from Edmonton, found her escape from Kuwait abruptly halted by an Iranian missile strike on Wednesday night. She was moments away from boarding a flight to London, England, which would have taken her home to Edmonton, when chaos erupted at Kuwait International Airport.
Chaos at the Airport
Loveridge noticed an unusual silence at the airport before air raid sirens, similar to truck reversing warnings, blared. She, along with thousands of other passengers, was directed to the airport's basement—normally staff-only hallways. Loveridge, recovering from surgery and using a wheelchair, described the scene as an "organized s–t show."
"We've all been moved into hallways in the bottom of the airport for staff. Thousands of people here. People are calm, but this is intense," she texted. "I'm in a room with others off the hallway. Screaming baby. You can imagine. But we're all waiting. The staff and a Kuwaiti young man, a teen, are distributing water. Here's where chaos theory works. From out of chaos emerges order. People respond faster in a critical event than government can."
Escalating Conflict
Kuwait, an ally of the United States, has become a target in the renewed hostilities between Iran and the U.S. The airport's Terminal 1 was attacked on June 3, killing one and wounding 63. Loveridge had weathered the conflict's first wave but decided to return home for a mental and physical break after the school year ended.
"It was a question of whether I would go home to Canada or not for a break," she said. "The war is getting on my nerves a bit. I was in a split mind whether or not to chill out in Kuwait. It is annoying that this war has continued. I think the breakdown of the ceasefire means that everything is escalating. That is exactly why there was an intense attack (last night)."
Evacuation and Return
After about half an hour, passengers were evacuated from the airport. Loveridge returned to her flat and plans to try again with a 4:45 a.m. flight, though she noted that the hours between midnight and dawn are prime for Iranian attacks. "It could happen again," she wrote. "I've been at the airport all afternoon, so trying to collect my checked bag to leave and go home to rest. People have been helpful."
Loveridge's story highlights the plight of foreign workers caught in the crossfire of geopolitical conflicts.
