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Southwest Airlines flight turns back after human heart discovery | Southwest Airlines flight turns back after human heart discovery |
(about 14 hours later) | |
A US passenger plane travelling from Seattle to Dallas was forced to turn back hours into its flight because a human heart had been left on board. | A US passenger plane travelling from Seattle to Dallas was forced to turn back hours into its flight because a human heart had been left on board. |
Southwest Airlines says the organ was flown to Seattle from California, where it was to be processed at a hospital to have a valve recovered for future use. | Southwest Airlines says the organ was flown to Seattle from California, where it was to be processed at a hospital to have a valve recovered for future use. |
But it was never unloaded and its absence was not noticed until the plane was almost half-way to Dallas. | But it was never unloaded and its absence was not noticed until the plane was almost half-way to Dallas. |
The heart itself had not been intended for a specific patient. | The heart itself had not been intended for a specific patient. |
Details of the incident, which occurred on Sunday, were revealed in media reports on Thursday. | Details of the incident, which occurred on Sunday, were revealed in media reports on Thursday. |
Passengers were said to have been shocked when the captain told them about the cargo and why the flight was turning back. | Passengers were said to have been shocked when the captain told them about the cargo and why the flight was turning back. |
Some used their smartphones to investigate the length of time that a heart can be stored before it is no longer viable for a transplant operation - typically between four and six hours, according to experts. | Some used their smartphones to investigate the length of time that a heart can be stored before it is no longer viable for a transplant operation - typically between four and six hours, according to experts. |
The plane was reportedly in the air for about three hours. | The plane was reportedly in the air for about three hours. |
A doctor who was among the passengers but not involved in the shipment of the organ, told the Seattle Times newspaper that the incident was a "horrific story of gross negligence". | A doctor who was among the passengers but not involved in the shipment of the organ, told the Seattle Times newspaper that the incident was a "horrific story of gross negligence". |
Following the flight's return to Seattle, the heart was taken to a donor health centre for tissue storage and was said to have been received within the required time frame, the newspaper added. | Following the flight's return to Seattle, the heart was taken to a donor health centre for tissue storage and was said to have been received within the required time frame, the newspaper added. |
In a statement, Southwest Airlines said the heart reached its intended destination "within the window of time allotted by our cargo customer". | |
A spokeswoman for Sierra Donor Services, the nonprofit that organised the donation, said that the heart will now be processed so that its valves can be used for life-saving procedures, but added that these "won't be available for implant for quite some time". | |
Monica Johnson, Sierra Donor Services' executive director, said the donor's family had been notified of the travel delay. | |
"They are relieved their loved one's heart valves were received and will be able to help others," she said. | |
After the plane returned to Seattle it was taken out of service due to a mechanical issue that Southwest says was unrelated to the heart mishap. |