Man takes sleep gummies before all flights were grounded, and he recorded trying to survive being stranded in Newark Airport without his luggage

Matt Peterson was ready to board his flight from Newark Airport to Phoenix, Arizona. But in a twist, the Federal Aviation Administration grounded all flights on November 14, leaving many travelers stranded. Unlike most travelers, however, Peterson had a problem: he had to survive hours at the airport after taking sleeping gummies.

“This is also just a public service announcement to not take your sleep gummies until you are in air, okay? Because I arrived here, already taken my sleep gummies, checked my bags, and now I’m walking through this place like I’m a zombie,” Peterson told TikTok. He recorded the clip and marked it as his first hour stuck in the airport.

Peterson alleged that people were panicking because they didn’t know what was happening. However, because he had taken the gummies, he couldn’t comprehend the chaos around him. In his second hour stranded at the airport, Peterson joked that he was corresponding with Kaitlan Collins from CNN while live reporting his situation. Nevertheless, by the second hour, Peterson was already lying down in a merchandising store at the airport.

The bottom shelf’s ledge cushioned his head as he wore a skincare sheet mask. Peterson said he was doing well, but kept hearing snippets of a mother speaking to her son. He promised to update his audience, who had become invested in his journey. Peterson said that he planned to keep his eyes open, even though he was already slumped on the floor.

Sleeping at the airport isn’t impossible, even without the gummies. While unhoused, one flight attendant said he slept at JFK Airport for months to keep his job. But unlike that flight attendant, Peterson was staying at a random airport store. By his third video, Peterson said his flight was canceled, and his bag was missing.

He napped at the airport, and then his bag went missing.

“I need a neck brace for the amount of whiplash I have been through in the last seven hours,” Peterson said. He was finally on an airplane after seven hours at the airport, as shown in his fourth video. Peterson explained that after he woke up, he learned his flight was canceled. Additionally, he didn’t know where his bag was. Regardless, he said he still got a massage and ate some food at the airport.

“It was an enjoyable environment for me,” Peterson said, despite being stranded and losing his bag. While walking around, he allegedly heard laughing and followed the sound. Apparently, a plane was boarding for Phoenix. When Peterson told them he needed to go to the city, staff allegedly told him to board. He claimed the plane was empty and advised others to stay calm, even amid uncertainty. Unlike Peterson, however, this woman’s flight to a Greek island was canceled, turning her quick trip into The Odyssey.

When he landed in Phoenix, Peterson waited for his bag to arrive through the carousel. The video showed no bags being pushed out for claim, and in his latest update, Peterson said he decided to buy a new wardrobe altogether. “Maybe this is the sign that I could start, like, a new era,” he said while trying on clothes at Lululemon. The status of his baggage is still unknown.

Have a tip we should know? [email protected]