Wow, what a huge lawsuit waiting to happen, I would think the airline would do everything it could to get those passengers out of there. On top of that, huge fines are likely according to the article. I don't see why the airline could not have deplaned people after the 2:00 hours mark or so, or at least deplane those who absolutely needed to get off.
Another bad thing is that the flight was going from Connecticut to Paris. That's a long flight. Did the plane just take-off for the long flight after the delay? That would continue the nightmare.
For me personally, after this experience, I'd end up doing a lot more driving for trips of 500 miles or less. I could entertain myself for days without a problem. That's not a survival issue for me. However, the lack of a working bathroom would be a huge problem for me and for everybody else on the plane!
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If you're reading this, it's too late.