Preston man dies in plane drama

A former Lancashire student died in an emergency flight drama at 30,000ft after he was sent home from Australia.
Michael Edgeley, 22, from Penwortham, near Preston, was taken ill on the plane in the early hours of yesterday morning and was given emergency oxygen treatment by cabin crew.
Emirates flight EK407, travelling from Melbourne to Dubai, was then forced to make an emergency stop in Mumbai, India so Mr Edgeley could be rushed to hospital.
But he died just minutes later in the back of an ambulance.
The former Hutton Grammar pupil and Preston College student had been in Australia since last year and was based in Melbourne.
But he had been ordered out of the country by the Australian Foreign Office which said he could no longer stay because his visa had run out.
His mother Jean, who lives in Higher Croft in Penwortham, had agreed to meet the cost of his flight home. She was told the bombshell news of her son's death in a 5.30am phone call yesterday. A spokesman for Emirates, said: "The cause of death is obviously under investigation and Emirates' condolences are with his family at this sad time."
A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: "We are aware of the death of a British national in Mumbai.
"We are now in contact with the next of kin and are providing consular assistance."
Mr Edgeley had boarded the Melbourne to Dubai flight which left Australia at 10.25pm on Thursday. He was due to get a connecting flight to Manchester when tragedy struck.
08/03/08 Emma Broom/Lancashire Evening Post, UK

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Airports Mar 2008, Foreign Mar 2008, Safety Mar 2008