In-flight heart attack brings family to Saskatoon
Tranquilino Tan had never heard of Saskatoon until the pilot announced it over the PA system.
When Tan suffered a massive heart attack while flying to Vancouver from Montreal, the plane was forced to land here.
On his way home to the Philippines after attending his daughter’s wedding, he started vomiting and turning red.
His wife Delia says she thought it was motion sickness at first, but eventually she realized it was more than that. He’d already had a minor heart attack before, and this seemed worse, she said.
Luckily, three doctors were on the flight. They gave him medication and set him up with an oxygen tank.
The plane landed as quickly as possible, and Tan was carried out on a stretcher.
Although he never could have imagined this twisted end to his vacation, he is making the most of it.
“Everyone’s been very good to me. I become superstar,” Tan said through an infectious smile as he posed for a photograph on Thursday at Royal University Hospital, where he is recovering from a successful quadruple bypass surgery.
“It’s sad, but we’re lucky,” Delia said.
Grateful as they are to have him alive and smiling, Tan and his wife said they’re nervous about their insurance coverage. The surgery is expensive, and they only bought a basic plan for their vacation. They’re unsure about whether their hospital bills will be covered.
“EVERYONE’S BEEN VERY GOOD TO ME. I BECOME SUPERSTAR.” TRANQUILINO TAN
“I have one piece of advice: make sure your insurance will work. Even though we got some, we’re still in a limbo,” said their daughter Phia, who cancelled her honeymoon after her father’s heart attack. “When you tour, you don’t know what will happen.”
Phia and Delia are staying with a local Filipino nurse who kindly offered them a room at her house.
“The Filipino community here is very good and very helpful,” Delia said.
Tan is expected to be released on Monday, and the family is unsure where they will stay after that.
The nurse’s house has stairs and he can’t walk up them. They said they hope to fly home in about two weeks.
“I’ve got no more money,” Delia said. “I went shopping to buy presents for my friends in Montreal, and only had small money for the flight. Now what will we do?”