A mother of two from the United States passed away unexpectedly after falling ill during an American Airlines flight from the Dominican Republic.
The 41-year-old woman identified by a relative online only as an Indiana mother of two was onboard American Airlines Flight 2790 from Punta Cana to Charlotte, North Carolina, when she suddenly became ill, the Royal Turks and Caicos Island Police Force announced on social media.
Flight crew tried to revive the woman as the plane was diverted to Providenciales International Airport in the Turks and Caicos so that further medical treatment could be provided, police said.
Officers said they received the call about the emergency landing at 6:12 p.m. that night and dispatched a medical team.
The woman was transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead, the police force said, noting “a post-mortem will be conducted to ascertain the cause of death.”
The passenger’s identity has not been released, but she was from central Indiana, according to Fox 59.
A woman on Facebook also identified the passenger as her sister-in-law.
“We are in disbelief and our hearts are broken,” Stephanie Quinn wrote in response to the Royal Turks and Caicos Island Police Force’s announcement.
Quinn described her sister-in-law as the only girl out of five siblings and the mother of two “beautiful children with big hearts and straight As.”
“She is still down there, so please take good care of her as she ventures home,” pleaded Quinn.