Holiday madness for holiday goers as CPR on COVID19 air passenger was required on a recent United flight to Los Angeles.
In what was described as a terrifying ordeal for nearby passengers, the man was seen on the plane shaking and sweating and having a hard time breathing even before the flight took off.
His condition deteriorated rapidly once in the air and the captain made the decision to perform an emergency landing in order for the man to receive medical attention.
The crew asked if there were any doctors onboard and a number of people got up to help.
Some passengers detailed how during CPR they could hear the patient’s rib bones crack as chest compressions were carried out before he started turning blue.
Tony Aldapa was one of the passengers on board who helped perform CPR on the man.
‘I got up out of my seat, let them know “Hey I know CPR” and asked “Do you need some extra help?” I can tap in and help with chest compressions. That’s how it all started.
‘By the point that I got there to the point where the fire department got on board, it was at least 45 minutes,’ Aldapa told press outlets.
‘There was no mouth-to-mouth at all. We were doing chest compressions and they had him on the oxygen mask from the plane, then once we had a medical bag that is kept on board we used an ambu-bag which is a bag that you squeeze to give breaths, that’s what we used for breathing,’ Aldapa continued when talking about CPR On COVID19 Air Passenger that has yet to be identified.
While talking to New Orleans EMS responders, the man’s wife admitted that her husband had tested positive for coronavirus meaning he likely lied when checking in for the flight.
During check-in, all United passengers have to self-report on whether they have experienced any coronavirus symptoms.
After the passenger was offloaded in New Orleans, his seat was wiped down, and the plane, a Boeing 737-900 with capacity for 179 people, continued its journey to Los Angeles.
CPR On COVID19 Air Passenger
CPR on a passenger is difficult in the best of circumstances. Our own board member, Christopher Suprun, has been on several flights where a medical emergency occured – everything from a illness that is getting worse to a person unconscious.
US commercial airlines carry a medical kit, known by multiple names, that can be opened by medical personnel with permission of the Pilot-in-Charge. This equipment can contain IV fluids, IV catheters, and cardiac drugs including epinephrine, lidocaine, and atropine.
United Airlines Statement: CPR On COVID19 Air Passenger
Aldapa described completing the flight “covered in my own sweat and in that man’s urine.”
He continued “I knew the risks involved in performing CPR on someone that potentially has COVID but I made the choice to do so anyways. I spoke with the passengers wife about his medical history and she never mentioned he was positive, she said he was scheduled to have a test done in LA.”
It is unclear how many of the passengers might develop symptoms given the enclosed air system on commercial flights.
The Centers for Disease Control has contacted United Airlines regarding this flight and passenger. It is unclear if they have also sough passenger manifests or identified the air crew and passengers who provided care to the COVID19 positive patient.
United issued the following statements:
‘Our flight diverted to New Orleans due to a medical emergency and paramedics transported the passenger to a local hospital where the individual was pronounced deceased. We have been in touch with his family and have extended our sincerest condolences to them for their loss.
‘At the time of the diversion, we were informed he had suffered a cardiac arrest, so passengers were given the option to take a later flight or continue on with their travel plans.
Now that the CDC has contacted us directly, we are sharing requested information with the agency so they can work with local health officials to conduct outreach to any customer the CDC believes may be at risk for possible exposure or infection.
‘The health and safety of our employees and customers is our highest priority, which is why we have various policies and procedures in place such as mask mandates and requiring customers to complete a ‘Ready-to-Fly’ checklist before the flight acknowledging they have not been diagnosed with COVID-19 in the last 14 days and do not have COVID-related symptoms,’ the statement read.
Passengers who traveled on the fateful flight unloaded a barrage of questions to United on social media asking the same questions any sensible person would ask.
