. Watch how pilot tried to get passengers off plane '' The flight 's 47 passengers described crying babies , overflowing toilets and cramped conditions . According to a Department of Transportation preliminary report , Mesaba 's representative refused to help passengers off of the plane , incorrectly saying the airport was closed to passengers for security reasons . In audiotapes released by the Transportation Department , the unnamed captain of the aircraft can be heard pleading with an airline dispatcher to find a way to get the passengers off the plane . `` We 're stuck here with no lavs , no nothing -- no food , '' he says . `` And they wo n't let them get off because the terminal is closed . '' Later , the dispatcher tells the captain that he has spoken to the commuter airline 's representative and that `` she says there is nothing she can do to help us out . She 's not going to let them off the plane . '' `` That 's ridiculous , '' the captain responds . LaHood , who called the incident a `` nightmare , '' said federal regulations allow passengers to
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- -- A poor decision by a regional airline was being blamed Friday for Continental Airlines passengers getting stranded overnight as their plane sat on a tarmac in Minnesota , federal transportation officials said Friday . Passengers on a Continental flight operated by ExpressJet sat on the tarmac for nearly six hours on August 8 . U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said a representative of Mesaba Airlines improperly refused requests by the plane 's captain and crew to let passengers off the plane . They were stuck on the tarmac in Rochester on August 8 from 12:38 a.m. to about 6 a.m. with nothing but pretzels to eat , LaHood said . `` There was a complete lack of common sense here , '' LaHood said in a written statement . `` It 's no wonder the flying public is so angry and frustrated . '' Mesaba , based in Eagan , Minnesota and owned by Delta Air Lines , was the only carrier able to assist Continental Flight 2816 , which was on its way from Houston , Texas , to Minneapolis , Minnesota , when it was diverted because of strong thunderstorms , LaHood said