70-Year-Old Passenger Dies Mid-Air

A 70-year-old man travelling with his family from Mumbai to Amritsar on a SpiceJet flight died in a freak accident after his denture and lower jaw got dislodged. The Mumbai-Amritsar SpiceJet flight had to be diverted to Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA). The passenger was rushed to a clinic at the airport, but could not survive. “Due to a blocked airway, the passenger couldn’t breathe. His body had turned blue depicting lack of oxygen,” said Dr Prabhanjan Shakunt, medical officer, Medanta’s airport clinic.

“The fight landed at T-1 in a medical emergency. Medanta Hospital gave him first aid but he could not survive. We have initiated the inquest proceeding,” DCP (airport) Sanjay Bhatia said.

According to the doctor, he also suffered from co-morbid conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and half of his body was already paralysed, making it a difficult case to handle.

“When he was brought to us, his tongue was already blue and his heart had stopped. Two doctors on board had already given him Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), which didn’t work. We also performed CPR for about an hour after he came to us but to no avail,” Shakunt added.

After deboarding the family, the flight continued course for Amritsar.

Source-Medindia