Mich. woman in wheelchair left overnight at O'Hare after flight was canceled
American Airlines aricraft sit at gates at O'Hare International Airport on May 11, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
CHICAGO (FOX 2) - A Michigan woman in a wheelchair was left alone overnight at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport when her flight was canceled.
FOX News reports 67-year-old Olimpia Warsaw had flown to Illinois to attend a relative's funeral. After the service, Warsaw had a booked flight back home to Michigan.
Her family reportedly took Warsaw to the airport and went to the gate with her, confirming with agents that she would be taken care of. She has Parkinson's disease and has trouble communicating.
After her family left, her American Airlines flight to Detroit was canceled, though, and a porter was assigned to take care of her. Her son, Claude Coltea, says Warsaw was offered a hotel room but when nobody would take her, the porter said his shift was over and left.
The next day, when Warsaw hadn't arrived in Detroit, her family grew concerned and called security. The woman was eventually located - in the same wheelchair and the same clothes she had been left in.
The family is now looking for answers from American Airlines as to how their mother was left.
American Airlines said in a statement to Fox News they have launched an investigation into the matter.
“We are very concerned about this, and have launched an investigation with our Chicago team and the vendor we utilize that provides wheelchair services at Chicago O’Hare.
“We have spoken with the family multiple times, and met with them both in Chicago and Detroit yesterday. Our team has already refunded back the fare for this trip,” the statement read.
The airline confirmed to Fox News the woman was offered a hotel voucher, but are looking into why she was not transported there.
FOX 2 reported on this story from Southfield, Mich.
The Associated Press contributed to this report