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An eight-year-old Missouri girl, Sydney Weston from Carl Junction, tragically passed away on a flight to Chicago after she suddenly fell ill and could not be revived, despite medical personnel’s exhaustive efforts to save her life upon the plane’s landing.
The young girl was traveling with her family from Joplin on a SkyWest Airlines flight, a partner of United Airlines, when she experienced a grave medical issue, prompting an emergency landing at the General Wayne A Downing Peoria International Airport in Peoria, Illinois, as reported by authorities.
Crew members on the flight immediately began providing assistance to Sydney, and upon the aircraft’s emergency landing at 7:02 a.m., just over an hour after departure, medical experts waiting on the ground initiated CPR and other life-saving measures. However, Sydney was found to be without a pulse and not breathing upon arrival in Peoria, according to the Peoria County Coroner’s Office.
Sydney was quickly transported to OSF Healthcare Saint Francis Medical Center, a short distance from the airport, where ongoing efforts to resuscitate her ultimately proved unsuccessful. She was pronounced dead at 8:05 a.m., officials confirmed.
SkyWest Airlines expressed gratitude towards the crew and medical professionals for their rapid response during the incident, as stated to the New York Post.
An autopsy to determine the exact cause of Sydney’s sudden passing is scheduled, with results expected to be made public afterward. Meanwhile, the local community has rallied around the Weston family, providing meals and support during their time of grief.
Authorities have asked for the public to keep all those affected by this tragic event in their thoughts and prayers.
This incident occurred amid another recent in-flight death, marking a somber period for air travel. Just days prior, Raiznal Farzad Khalik, a 41-year-old passenger on a Fiji Airways flight from Nadi, Fiji to San Francisco, passed away under similar circumstances despite the efforts of the flight crew and an on-board doctor.
A study published in The American Journal of Emergency Medicine in 2021 highlighted the rarity of in-flight deaths, estimating a global mortality rate of 0.21 deaths per million passengers.