The airport screwed up i dont know how you can forget about a man for 3 days .... but what about his family? didnt they think to tell the police my older father was getting of a plain at such and such time we never saw him?
Having worked airport security eons ago I am also appalled at this story. Three days?? Yes indeed hopefully the minister's family will litigate til the fricken airport is shut down (bankrupted).
The main culprit has to be the person who wheeled him outside and left him. Find that S.O.B. and pin his *** to the wall first then go after everyone else who obviously ignored the poor man.
This is a tragedy and yes it deserves discussion here in the study because we need to take a closer look at this. There much more to it than just plain negligence.
You gotta think of the thousands of passengers that must've passed the old man while entering/exiting the airport. You'd think SOMEONE would've noticed something wrong here? That maybe the smell (he had to have pissed his pants at one time or another just sitting there helpless) would've garnered some notice by someone?
Yes, what about the skycaps? Where were they? Ok, fair question where was the man placed that made it so "easy for everyone NOT to notice him?" Maybe he wasn't in the main stream of the flow in/out of the airport terminal.
Either way Security drives all around the place you'd think after passing the guy say 10-20 times and he hasn't moved would've piqued SOME officer's curiosity? It sure as hell would've piqued mine.
Sigh. I'd really like to read the follow up on it and see what the airport management has to say about it.
Another question... after three days... didn't ANYONE (back home) miss him? Was a APB (or whatever the equivalent) put out? Didn't anyone call the airport and ask about him? What is the family's story?
What can and will be done about this to ensure it won't happen again?
Mein gott!
These are damn fine questions - and you might want to remember what I went through two years ago with my mom. She was reported missing, the police called all the hospitals in the area,
ONE OF WHICH SHE WAS IN, and the hospital said she wasn't there.
We have to remember some very important things in our lifewalk as caring people on this planet:
1. Thousands of people hit that sidewalk daily and some are in wheelchairs. When people are looking around paying attention to many, many things it might be easy to think it's just another person in a chair waiting for a pickup. Sounds weak and it is ... the security implications are enormous.
2. If you walked up to the airport in a hurry for your flight and saw a disheveled man reeking of urine and feces looking like he's 3 sheets to the wind in a wheelchair, would
you stop and check on the situation? or would you try to make your
flight? Honest answer, now. I can see where someone might think it's a homeless person not worthy of notice, not their problem or whatever. How many people reeking of swill have you passed by and not checked on?
3. Would the consideration for your personal safety preclude you from doing so? and if so, exactly how different from what happened to this man do you deem that answer?
This is a failure in security as well as humanitarianism. But let's not forget ourselves, shall we?
I will pray for this man and his family - please excuse the devil's advocacy.