A 42-year-old Indian who was on board an Air India flight from Lagos to Mumbai, India, died on Sunday under unusual circumstances, according to India Today.
The High Commission of India in Abuja had on Saturday announced the departure of 231 Indian evacuees on an Air India aircraft with flight number, AI 1906.
India has recently expedited a number of repatriation flights for citizens stranded in Nigeria amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Seeing off 231 passengers of the AI 1906 LOS-BOM flight today, the first of four flights to Mumbai under #VandeBharatMission from Nigeria. Thank @NigeriaMFA, @nigimmigration, @airindiain, Satguru travels and Mission team.@DrSJaishankar@MEAIndia@MoCA_GoI@PIBHomeAffairs pic.twitter.com/tg3e98v8TZ
— India in Nigeria (As well as Benin, Chad & ECOWAS) (@india_nigeria) June 13, 2020
In a statement, Air India said, “A passenger aboard AI1906 of 13th June 2020, from Lagos to Mumbai passed away due to natural causes today.
“A doctor on board along with our crew, who are trained to handle such medical emergencies, made a valiant attempt to revive the pax, aged 42, who had suddenly collapsed, through resuscitation etc but all their efforts went in vain. He was declared dead on board by the attending doctor.”
READ ALSO: 312 Indians evacuated from Nigeria on Air Peace flight
The airline added that the doctors at the Mumbai airport confirmed the death of the passenger on arrival and the aircraft has been taken for disinfection.
“The MIAL doctors attended to the pax after the flight landed and after all the procedures were complete, the body was sent to a hospital as per protocol. Relatives of the deceased were informed and aircraft taken for full fumigation as per norms,” it added.
The death has raised several questions on the checks and thermal screening being conducted at airports amid the pandemic.
