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Man dies after shaking, sweating 'with Covid' on United Airlines flight, CDC trying to trace all 179 passengers

A passenger claimed that the deceased's wife said that he had been showing symptoms and she had suspected it was Covid-19

A United Airlines passenger died while traveling after "shaking and sweating with Covid" in a flight from Orlando to LA on Monday, December 14. The victim was pronounced dead after an emergency landing in New Orleans, even though medics aboard the flight United 591 had reportedly performed CPR on the man in an attempt to save him.

A passenger told Mail Online that the deceased's wife said that he had been showing symptoms last week and she had suspected it was Covid-19. after the New Orleans emergency landing, all the other passengers were carried on to LA in the same flight, and some claimed they weren't even given a chance to rebook on a different flight.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is currently rushing to trace all the 179 passengers that were on board the flight where the tragic incident took place. The airline has been vehemently criticized by passengers as they claimed that the victim was allowed to board the flight despite showing symptoms. "Can I ask how you guys let a covid positive man on my flight last night?" The Sun quotes a passenger saying, adding: "He was shaking and sweating boarding the plane. He was clearly sick and then died mid-flight. We had an emergency landing in New Orleans and we didn't even switch planes afterward. We all sat there for hours waiting while you guys cleaned up his blood and germs with wet wipes. Is this how you guys handle other people's safety and health?"

Another traveler on the United 591 took to Twitter to complain "United, why did you never check our temperatures before boarding? The family of the man, why didn’t you go to the hospital or not let your husband get on the flight feeling like that? An entire plane had to watch him seize or have a heart attack none of us know which, and die." The same traveler followed up with another tweet elaborating how "Before I sat in my seat, walking through the aisle you could see that he was having a hard time breathing. I made eye contact with his wife and looked at him and she just looked down. I believe he passed around the time we took off (just guessing because that makes most sense)" They added: "But the medical personnel who helped him on the flight tried to revive him for an hour... the family was crying, people were freaking out. He was shocked twice, given an epi-pen, 2 shots of adrenaline and mouth to mouth after chest compressions..."

CDC's Charles Hobart told Mail Online that United Airlines have been asked for a full list of passengers so they can be traced. According to the Airline, the victim, before boarding, had filled out a form saying neither had he tested positive, nor had he shown any symptoms of Covid-19. "It is apparent the passenger wrongly acknowledged this requirement," United has said. Although the CDC is yet to inform the airlines if the man died of Covid-19 or specify a cause of death, his wife was overheard telling the emergency medics on board that he had shown symptoms like loss of smell and taste.

While gathering information on whether further public health action is required, the CDC spokesperson told AP: "To protect the privacy of the individual, we aren't providing this information to the public." As of now, all flight attendants onboard the United 591 are in a two-week quarantine since the plane landed in LA, revealed Taylor Garland, a spokeswoman for the Association of Flight Attendants. "Our union continues to provide support to the crew," Garland said, adding: "We urge passengers to comply with airline Covid policies and stay home if you're sick."