At least 20 passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines flight that experienced extreme turbulence in Asia remain in intensive care, with several needing surgery for brain injuries and spinal cord damage.
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The Boeing 777-300ER hit what an airline official described as “sudden extreme turbulence” over Myanmar, sending passengers and crew flying, with some slamming into the ceiling.
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A 73-year-old British man died while 104 people were injured on the flight, which was carrying 211 passengers and 18 crew from London to Singapore on Tuesday.
Adinun Kittiratanapaibool, director of Bangkok’s Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital, said his staff were treating six people for skull and brain injuries, 22 for spinal injuries, and 13 for bone, muscle and other injuries.
They include six Britons, six Malaysians, three Australians, two Singaporeans and one person each from Hong Kong, New Zealand and the Philippines.
Other hospitals nearby have been asked to lend their best specialists to assist in the treatment of those injured.
The injured at the hospital range in age from two to 83, he added. None of the ICU patients are in a life-threatening condition.
Seventeen surgeries have already been performed – nine spinal surgeries and eight for other injuries, he said. Several more will need further surgery.
Asked about the prognosis for the most serious cases, Mr Adinun said it was too early to tell if any could suffer permanent paralysis, and doctors would have to observe whether muscle function recovers after surgery.
