Pinoys on Singapore flight mishap get gov’t assistance

The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Tuesday said it was monitoring the condition of the fifth Filipino passenger who was aboard the Singapore Airlines flight that ran into severe turbulence on 21 May.

The DMW said the passenger, a male, was rendered unconscious in the incident and is confined in a hospital intensive care unit in Bangkok, Thailand.

“The fifth Filipino passenger, a 62-year-old male, is confined in a hospital’s ICU after becoming unconscious. Doctors are monitoring his condition for further evaluation and treatment,” the DMW said in a statement.

It added that the man’s nephew, who is based in Bangkok, was assisting him.

The DMW said representatives from the Philippine embassy in Bangkok also visited a Singapore-based OFW, a woman, who suffered a neck fracture and back injuries.

She is set to undergo surgery on Thursday evening for the neck fracture. The course of treatment or surgery options for her back injuries have yet to be discussed.

Doctors said her condition remained “sensitive” but stable. The embassy is arranging for her family to join her in Bangkok as she recovers.

Meanwhile, the Migrant Workers Office in London reported that the mother of a two-year-old infant, who is a UK-based Filipino staff nurse, is already a permanent resident of the United Kingdom.

Her husband who was with them on a dependent’s visa and the whole family are all in stable condition.

Singapore Airlines said that it will cover all the expenses of the affected passengers of the flight which made an emergency landing in Bangkok following “severe extreme turbulence” over the Irrawady Basin in Myanmar.

The flight carried 211 passengers and 18 crew members. A 73-year-old British man suffered a suspected heart attack and died while 30 other passengers sustained serious injuries. An investigation into the incident is ongoing.