Flight Crew on Southwest Airlines Flight Jumps Into Action

I was traveling home to East Providence on the Las Vegas to Providence flight February 10th, (the day after the big snowstorm hit Rhode Island, the airport was in chaos hundreds of flights being canceled) on flight number 1200 with a stop in Orlando, Florida on Southwest Airlines with my friend Bob Darling, after a successful wager on the Patriots winning the Super Bowl. We switched planes in Orlando as planned and boarded flight 4051 to Providence. Everything was going along fine until about an hour into the flight one of the crew members asked over the speaker system if there were any pediatric medical people aboard and would they please come forward to the front of the plane. About five people rushed to the front of the plane. I was sitting about five rows back and observed them taking a little girl, maybe three or four years old, out of her seat, laying her down in the aisle, and working quickly to try to stabilize her condition. The Southwest crew members went into action keeping everybody calm, cool and collective. One crew member retrieved an oxygen tank and put a mask over the child’s face so she could breathe easily, while another crew member was on the phone with (I believe) medical personnel at a hospital. The child's mother was crying and another crew member was trying to console her. This went on for about 20 minutes before the captain announced that we were going to have to make an emergency landing in Raleigh, North Carolina, which was about 20 minutes away. The crew worked quickly to prepare the plane for landing. When we landed there were medical personnel waiting at the gate. They boarded the plane, taking the child into the waiting ambulance. We departed about 20 minutes later and they were still working on her next to our plane. Unfortunately, I don't know how the child made out. We found out later that the little girl and her family were at Disney World, the trip made possible by the Make-A-Wish foundation. After all that we arrived in Providence only 50 minutes late. Anyone who thinks that all that the crew members do on the plane is hand out snacks and pick up trash should have the experience I had on this trip. They worked professionally, courteously and were well-trained and ready for this emergency.  I just wanted to publicly thank the Southwest Airlines crew members for a job well done.

David Di Saia
179 Warren Ave.
East Providence RI 01914
401-486-7048