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American Airlines food killed passenger, claims lawsuit
As if filing for bankruptcy protection was not enough to fill American Airlines plate, now a passenger is claiming the troubled airline killed her husband.According to the lawsuit, Raquel and Othon Cortes were on a flight to their home in Miami and had just completed the first leg of their journey, a flight from Barcelona to New York, when dinner was served. Othon chose the chicken, Raquel chose something else, reports NewTimes.
On the ground at JFK it was apparent that something was wrong with Othon. He became pale, had stomach cramps and was suddenly very thirsty, symptoms consistent with food poisoning, in a typical time-frame.
Raquel told NewTimes that as they boarded the flight from JFK to Miami, her husband's illness was "expressed and obvious" to AA staff. Boarding anyway, things took a turn for the worse quickly with Othon presenting nausea and shortness of breath which preceded a heart attack. He was pronounced dead in Norfolk, Virginia where the plane made an emergency landing, albeit too late.
Raquel and Sandra Cortes, Othon's daughter have filed suit against American Airlines and Sky Chefs, the airplane catering company that apparently prepared the meal.
The lawsuit, reported to be in excess of $1 million by Tourism and Aviation has four points:
The lawsuit, reported to be in excess of $1 million by Tourism and Aviation has four points:
- The chicken was poisoned.
- AA was negligent for even allowing Othon to board the flight in the first place.
- AA failed to provide medical attention.
- AA waited too long for an emergency landing.
Filed under: North America, United States, Airlines, Airline Reviews
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Crissy Dec 1st 2011 11:06AM
Did they ever ask for medical attention? They weren't in the care of AA between the flights. I suspect they just wanted to get home and were afraid that if they got medical attention they would miss their connecting flight.
Pniswrinkles Dec 1st 2011 3:14PM
The sad part about all this, you and I get to pay for all this ,,,even if the idiot loses the lawsuit,,AA will have to pay out zillions in legal fee's...where does the bill go from there? Higher ticket prices right? People like this, who can not take ANY responsibility for what they do,,,shouldnt be alloed to reside in this country...send em to Pakistan and see how suing an Airline works out for them
vman Dec 1st 2011 11:28AM
Good points, Chrissy! "Expressed and obvious" to AA staff? How many glasses of wine or shots of bourbon had he consumed? Maybe he just looked drunk to them. And the chances are he was not the only chicken eater on board. Oh, right, allergies! Did he tell anyone/request special meal? His age and medical history will come out. NO, I am neither a lawyer or airline/food service employee.
JUDY Dec 1st 2011 12:04PM
NOW I KNOW WHY I DON'T FLY FIRST CLASS.
tom Dec 1st 2011 12:13PM
OK, if his sickness was obvious...why did they even board the plane? His wife is twice as guilty as the airline. She would know best on how her husband looks and acts. Anyone else get food poisioning on the flight? Blame the airline seems to be the typical lawsuit happy people. Time for people to account for their own actions. I find it hard to believe that if no one else got sick...it was from the airline food.
Sara Dec 1st 2011 12:17PM
Anybody else get sick and die from eating the same chicken?
I cannot believe people file these ridiculous lawsuits...
LINDA HUTHMAKER Dec 1st 2011 10:36PM
Like you, I have had food poisoning before, and the onset of illness does NOT occur immediately. Also like the previous statement, lawsuits of this type should be researched-all avenues checked before filing. Not well thought out, at all.
David Dec 1st 2011 12:24PM
Food poisoning occurs 8 hours or MORE after eating spoiled food. Not immediately. People should be required to have some sort of proof before filing lawsuits. It is just common sense.
Lee Dec 1st 2011 12:33PM
No, David, actually food poisoning usually occurs within an hour of eating. Anything that kicks in later might be traced to a different virus or bacteria that could come from anywhere including a food handler.
CherylB Dec 1st 2011 1:48PM
WRONG. I got food poisoning and presented symptoms approximately THREE hours after ingesting the food that gave it to me. I'm not saying he did have food poisoning from in-flight food. I'm just saying your EIGHT HOUR timetable does not always apply. There are several types of food poisoning.
spoonster Dec 1st 2011 5:10PM
The time of onset for food poisoning symptoms is multi factorial. It depends on the bacteria that is carrying the toxin, the amount of that toxin, and the health and genetic makeup of the particular individual. For example, most people will express symptoms to salmonella 8 to 12 hours after ingestion, and may in fact have another meal sometime prior to showing symptoms, thus clouding the actual source of the problem and the perceived timing.
Something like E. coli 0157:H7, which is typically due to fecal matter and is easily transported in water, may or may not take days to express itself.
On the other hand, many people will show an almost immediate reaction to toxins found in shellfish or other seafood.
There are some toxins that can take days and even weeks to express themselves as symptoms.
And of course there are the issues of allergic reactions and how they manifest themselves as symptoms in the person in question. Many times, a person that thinks they have contracted food poisoning is in fact allergic to a particular item in the meal.
In this case, while improperly prepared chicken runs the risk of carrying salmonella, it can also carry staph and even listeria. Plus there are other foods in the same dish that can cause problems.
People often ask why they have not been affected after having eaten the same dish as someone who has fallen ill. The answer is that bacterial contamination can occur in "hot spots" and may or may not be in a homogeneous presence or concentration throughout the dish.
In terms of the validity of such a suit, I suppose that the deceased may have boarded the plane feeling crappy but not necessarily dire. Perhaps as the flight continued things turned substantially worse in terms of how he felt. There really aren't enough details in the article to be able base much of an opinion one way or the other for me.
Helen Miller Dec 2nd 2011 12:27AM
Spoonster information is correct. But I'd like to point out that early symptoms of a heart attack often mimic gastrointestinal problems. It's not uncommon for heart attack victims to be found slumped over on the toilet because they mistook their symptoms for vomiting/diarrhea. I'm suspicious that this man didn't have food poisoning, but was actually in the process of having a heart attack the whole time.
Janet Dec 2nd 2011 9:10AM
One of my co-workers at the hospital where I work ate some bad seafood, and within 1 hour she was vomiting, had terrible cramps, diarrhea, and was in the hospital for 4 days. The ER physician said he usually sees onset in 1-8 hours.
Lori Dec 1st 2011 12:32PM
SERIOUSLY?????? Take some responsibility for your own actions people!!!! If you do not feel well the airline will not prevent you from boarding the aircraft. They may suggest that you don't board, but will not prevent you from doing so. That is your decision. The only way you will be denied boarding is if you are drunk and that is a FAA regulation. If you do not feel well you can ask any airline employee to get you medical attention. As for the food, as many people have stated on here...is he the only one that got sick? The allegations that the crew was negligent in their response...how soon did you call them for help??? There are procedures that must be followed once you do ask for help. The time it takes to divert an aircraft for emergency landings is not that long and since you started in JFK and landed in Norfolk, I know you were not in the air very long at all. So really you micght want to look a little harder at who really is to blame here. Doesn't sound like the airline to me!!
David Dec 1st 2011 12:46PM
What I remember from med school was that food poisoning does not start immediately. A quick research suggests both of us are wrong, but it generally does not start until 2-6 hours after eating and can be much longer before symptoms occur.
uncommonsensesc Dec 1st 2011 12:53PM
The guy had a heart attack - plain and simple! The family just sees a way to make some big bucks off his death!
Lisa Dec 1st 2011 8:30PM
Heart attack. That's my guess. Did anyone else get sick from the chicken?
uncommonsensesc Dec 1st 2011 12:57PM
Food poisoning can and does start earlier but I've had it occur after about 6 hours as well. My friend and I went out to eat - she was sick within half an hour of eating our appetizers (stuffed mushrooms) but it wasn't until later that night that I got sick.
LARRY Dec 1st 2011 5:02PM
DAMN, I LOVE STUFFED MUSHROOMS. OF COURSE I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO EAT 1 AGAIN.
Deborah Dec 1st 2011 1:06PM
Never ever everEVER take the chicken. By the time that rubberized pseudo-poultry reaches your tray table it has been nuked repeatedly for no less than 16 hours intermittently replacing every molecule of real chicken with a synthetic poultry-like substance. If you need help staying away from the chicken just think Brundle-Fly. Silly movie concept has kept me away from chicken for 3 years. This goes for 1st class as well. If a meal is served on a long flight go vegetarian or kosher