Photo: chicago.cbslocal.com
A 67-year-old disabled woman was left overnight at the O’Hare Airport in Chicago, in her wheelchair, after her flight to Detroit was canceled and the porter who had assisted her refused to help her to a hotel.
Olimpia Warsaw was in Chicago to attend her ex-husband’s funeral, her sons, Claude and Julian Coltea, tells CBS Chicago. After the service, Claude took his mother to the airport and spoke to a porter so she could get on board safely; he would fly out to Detroit some time later, but he had Julian come pick her up once she landed.
The woman has Parkinson’s disease and diabetes, and has difficulties walking. The porter promised he would see that her luggage is checked and she is boarded on time.
“I walked with her all the way to her gate,” Claude says. “I confirmed with the gate agent that the flight was on time. Everything was ok. She said, ‘Yup, all’s fine. We’ll take good care of your mom.’”
However, the flight got canceled and the porter’s shift ended. Warsaw was offered a hotel room by the airline, but with the porter gone and her speech abilities limited, she had no way of finding transportation on her own. Claude says that the porter simply refused to help her find a car to get to her hotel.
When Warsaw didn’t land in Detroit, her family started worrying and the first thing they did was call American Airlines. No one could find her anywhere, Claude tells the media outlet. After hours of searching, they eventually found her, dressed in the same clothes, sitting in the same wheelchair the porter had left her in.
“All we wanted was someone to pause and say, ‘You know what, can we just make sure this human being is safe and then we can all go home?’” Claude says. “Not one person did that.”
American Airlines confirms Wasaw was given a hotel voucher and says the porter should have taken her to the shuttle for transport, as per regulations. However, the porter was not in the airline company’s employment, they add. An investigation into the incident is underway.
The woman has Parkinson’s disease and diabetes, and has difficulties walking. The porter promised he would see that her luggage is checked and she is boarded on time.
“I walked with her all the way to her gate,” Claude says. “I confirmed with the gate agent that the flight was on time. Everything was ok. She said, ‘Yup, all’s fine. We’ll take good care of your mom.’”
However, the flight got canceled and the porter’s shift ended. Warsaw was offered a hotel room by the airline, but with the porter gone and her speech abilities limited, she had no way of finding transportation on her own. Claude says that the porter simply refused to help her find a car to get to her hotel.
When Warsaw didn’t land in Detroit, her family started worrying and the first thing they did was call American Airlines. No one could find her anywhere, Claude tells the media outlet. After hours of searching, they eventually found her, dressed in the same clothes, sitting in the same wheelchair the porter had left her in.
“All we wanted was someone to pause and say, ‘You know what, can we just make sure this human being is safe and then we can all go home?’” Claude says. “Not one person did that.”
American Airlines confirms Wasaw was given a hotel voucher and says the porter should have taken her to the shuttle for transport, as per regulations. However, the porter was not in the airline company’s employment, they add. An investigation into the incident is underway.
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