The Colorado woman whose infant overheated on a United Airlines plane that was delayed has retained an attorney, meaning she might sue the company.
Several days ago, Emily France and her 4-month-old son were on a United flight from Denver to Texas on a hot day. The plane’s cabin was reportedly hot and her baby started turning red, she told the Denver Post. The child was rushed by ambulance to the emergency room.
France said that during the two-hour delay, which was triggered by refueling and a reroute due to the weather, the plane cabin’s temperatures reportedly spiked. The child started to overheat, and she tried to cool him down.
The airline, she alleged, wasn’t able to handle the situation, NBC reported. After screaming and turning red, her boy “went limp” in her arms, she said. The boy was hospitalized and was since released. “I thought my child was going to die in my arms,” she added to The Post. That week, temperatures in the Denver area reached around 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
United, in a statement, said the incident “should never have happened” and expressed its apologies. “We are actively looking into what happened to prevent this from occurring again,” it added.
Despite the apology, France wants an attorney to step in. David Rapoport of Chicago said that he hopes the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board get involved, and that he’s now prepared to file a lawsuit on behalf of France.
“Cabin safety for infants and everyone else is part of an airline’s job,” Rapoport told The Denver Post. “Airlines owe their passengers the highest duty of care under federal and state law. Infant safety is part of that duty, and the airline here failed everyone aboard that overheated flight.”
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