or possibly not.
Posted on 02/24/2008 8:14:18 PM PST by Paleo Conservative
NEW YORK — An American Airlines passenger died after a flight attendant told her he couldn't give her any oxygen and then tried to help her with faulty equipment, including an empty oxygen tank, a relative said.
The airline confirmed the flight death and said medical professionals had tried to save the passenger, Carine Desir, who was returning home to Brooklyn from Haiti.
Desir, who had heart disease, died of natural causes, medical examiner's office spokeswoman Ellen Borakove said Sunday.
Desir had complained of not feeling well and being very thirsty on the Friday flight from Port-au-Prince after she ate a meal, according to Antonio Oliver, a cousin who was traveling with her and her brother Joel Desir. A flight attendant gave her water, he said.
A few minutes later, Desir said she was having trouble breathing and asked for oxygen, but a flight attendant twice refused her request, Oliver said Sunday in a telephone interview.
After the flight attendant refused to administer oxygen to Desir, she became distressed, pleading, "Don't let me die," Oliver recalled.
Other passengers aboard Flight 896 became agitated over the situation, he said, and the flight attendant, apparently after phone consultation with the cockpit, tried to administer oxygen from a portable tank and mask, but the tank was empty.
Two doctors and two nurses were aboard and tried to administer oxygen from a second tank, which also was empty, Oliver said.
Desir was put on the floor, and a nurse tried CPR, to no avail, Oliver said. A "box," possibly a defibrillator, also was applied but didn't function effectively, he said.
"I cannot believe what is happening on the plane," he said, sobbing. "She cannot get up, and nothing on the plane works."
Oliver said he then asked for the plane to "land right away so I can get her to a hospital," and the pilot agreed to divert to Miami, 45 minutes away. But during that time, Desir died, Oliver said.
"Her last words were, 'I cannot breathe,'" he said.
Desir, 44, was pronounced dead by one of the doctors, Joel Shulkin, and the flight continued to Kennedy International Airport without stopping in Miami, with the woman's body moved to the floor of the first-class section and covered with a blanket, Oliver said.
American Airlines spokeswoman Sonja Whitemon wouldn't comment Sunday on Oliver's claims of faulty medical equipment. Shulkin, through his attorney, Justin Nadeau, declined to comment on the incident out of respect for Desir's family.
American Airlines, a unit of AMR Corp. and based in Fort Worth, Texas, is the largest domestic airline.
I was delayed one time when Eastern took two hours to find a replacement oxygen bottle at their Miami base. I could have driven to Orlando faster. The oxygen had been used on the flight's previous leg when a pro wrestler had a high blood pressure attack.
They may have (more than once) and the ones who pay the bills said, "forgettaboutit" and that was that.
Why?
If she had a heart attack, and the O2 was working, would the administering of oxygen have prevented her death?
I doubt it.
or possibly not.
IMHO, regarding certain high-probability last resort equipment, my answer is a qualified yes. But training is required, or the equipment is useless. I’m thinking OXY, DEFIB — but NO chemical meds (liability too great).
Good question. I also wonder if they tried to administer aspirin.
The thing is the plane is supposed to be grounded without oxygen bottles functioning. That's going to look real bad in front of a jury, especially when her last words were she couldn't breath.
It sounds to me the lawsuit should be against God. He was calling her home.
Wonder how much inspection the lady had to endure to get on the flight.
I dislike lawyers, but i agree—I hope the family will own AMR when it’s over with *if all of the facts areas presented.
"Shouldn't we test the oxygen masks to make sure they're working?"
Empty tanks and a dead battery; AA will pray to settle and not go to trial.
Don’t airlines routinely ban individuals who need oxygen from flying? I thought it was some sort of safety issue.
Hey, they did upgrade her to First Class...
As Tom Clancy once wrote, the bright yellow masks and vests are really intended to help locate victims of an air crash after the fact.
Once upon a time flight attendants were RNs..but that was in the 40s and 50s. Maybe we need to go back to that standard.
Your post assumes that Antonio Oliver - who stands to gain financially from a successful lawsuit - was giving an impartial account of the incident.
I'll reserve judgment.
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