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Spirit Airlines Accused of Abandoning Passenger With Dementia Who Was Later Killed on Highway
A 75-year-old man with dementia who had been cleared for special assistance died after he left George Bush Intercontinental Airport unaccompanied and was struck by multiple vehicles on a nearby freeway. His family filed a federal lawsuit stating that Spirit Airlines confirmed it would provide help but did not do so.
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Spirit Airlines is accused in a federal lawsuit of failing to provide promised assistance to a 75-year-old passenger with dementia, after which the man left George Bush Intercontinental Airport unaccompanied and was fatally struck by multiple vehicles on a nearby highway.
According to the complaint filed April 22 in Houston federal court, a relative checked Marcos Humberto Vindel Osorio in for Spirit Airlines flight 1630 on June 8, 2024, at Palmerola International Airport in Comayagua, Honduras. The relative informed the airline agent about Osorio's mild dementia, which was triggered and exacerbated by stress, and requested assistance with deplaning and navigating the terminal in Houston.
The complaint states that the Spirit agent confirmed assistance would be provided. m. local time. When Osorio did not appear in the arrivals area, family members waiting for him became concerned and contacted police. Searchers later located his body more than three hours after the flight's arrival along U.S. Route 59, also known as the Eastex Freeway, several miles from the airport.
The lawsuit states that Osorio had walked for an estimated two hours before he was struck and killed by multiple vehicles. It contends that the airline's failure to provide the promised assistance was the direct and proximate cause of his death.
The complaint notes that commercial airlines do not ordinarily confirm special assistance for a passenger with a known cognitive disability and then provide no assistance. Individual carriers are responsible for providing disability assistance at airports under the Air Carrier Access Act, which covers passengers with cognitive impairments.
