Mangaluru: The body of William Fernandes was, on Wednesday, July 10, brought to Mangaluru. His final rites will be held on Friday at the Holy Cross Church, Kulshekar.
It can be recalled that William (49), who had worked as a nurse in Israel for the past years, collapsed and died at the Mumbai Airport on Tuesday when his boarding was denied as the flight was overbooked. He was reportedly in a hurry to reach Mangaluru as he had to undergo an operation for vertebrae damage. His back injury left him unable to walk and he was using a wheelchair to move about.
Arun Fernandes, his friend from Israel who accompanied him to India, had booked emergency tickets for the two of them. The two were scheduled to leave for Mangaluru at 10.25 AM in an Air India flight from Mumbai and their families were awaiting their arrival, along with an ambulance at the Mangaluru International Airport.
According to William’s brother-in-law Prasad Peter Vas, the airline offered the deceased and his friend another flight to Goa, from where they would be taken to Mangaluru in a four-wheeler. He also alleged that the airline was aware that William’s was a medical emergency but did not prioritise him.
AI has, however, denied these claims saying that they were not informed that William was in a wheelchair.