I was stuck inside an airplane once at Heathrow, because the stairs they pull up to the aircraft would not work, and neither would the chute.
A link to pictures posted at CBS News:
http://www.cbsnews.com/2300-201_162-10015763.html
Listening to the non-stop late evening coverage on the cable channels revealed that complete strangers came together and bonded, and many of the passengers they interviewed had formed Bible-study groups! And almost without exception, they praised the efforts of the crew to make them as comfortable as they could under the conditions. Bet the interviews surprised the heck out of CNN who were looking for uniformly angry passengers (the first two ladies they interviewed provided that fodder but the ones after that were just happy to be home, made new friends and praised the crew).