A family is back home in Seattle, after they were stranded in the United Arab Emirates for six days. Their trip was unexpectedly extended, as the conflict in Iran continues escalating.
A family is back home in Seattle , after they were stranded in the United Arab Emirates for six days. Their trip was unexpectedly extended, as the conflict in Iran continues escalating.Francesca Braddock and her family heard and saw missiles overhead and plumes of smoke filling the air outside their hotel window in Dubai.
"Ethan, my older son, is like, mom, like, do you see all that smoke over there?" Braddock said. " oh my gosh, what is happening?"She was on vacation with her boyfriend and her two sons, when they got stranded in Dubai. "It was horrifying," Braddock said.They were scheduled to return to Seattle on Feb. 28, but when the airstrikes began in Iran, that forced the country’s airspace to close leaving Braddock caught in the war zone."You can hear these pops and bangs going on in the distance, and they'll ask ‘what is that?,’ and you’re like it’s the A/C, it's the A/C, and trying to reach someone, and no one is reachable," Braddock said.She tried calling the airlines and couldn’t get through, tried calling the consulate and couldn’t get through. All while getting alerts that said, ‘seek immediate shelter because of potential missile threats.’"You're seeing the Dubai airport get hit by a drone," Braddock said. "You are seeing your family freaking out, and obviously you’re freaking out."Eventually, they got on a flight to Taiwan and from there made it back to Seattle. "It was just such a breath of fresh air," Braddock said.Tess Arnold was on a flight from Nairobi and had a five-hour layover in Dubai. That layover turned into four days."It was, you know, scary. I feel like I was on edge most of the time," Arnold said. She took these photos from the airport of people packed in closely together, and every flight was canceled.Fortunately, she got on a flight to London and was able to make it back to Seattle. "It was a huge relief," Arnold said.The experience has had a lasting impact on her. "I travel quite a bit, and I’ve even, you know, told my family like, I think I’m done traveling for the year, at least on a plane," Arnold said.Before the airstrikes started, Braddock said her family had a picture-perfect trip. They were sightseeing and riding camels, but now, she told FOX 13, she doesn’t know if they’ll ever go back to the Middle East.WA Gov. Ferguson cancels parole of convicted rapist who previously fled statePhone app, 'wife's intuition' saves WA skier buried by avalanche in Stevens Pass33 charged in 2025 pro-Palestinian protest at UW in SeattleGig Harbor, WA community remembers 4 women killed in Key Peninsula stabbingWA measles cases rise to 26 as US total tops 1,100 in 2026To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.
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