A Delta Air Lines flight was forced to divert to Sacramento, California, after a passenger died on the plane, news outlets reported Saturday.
Flight 1837 had been enroute from Cabo San Lucas, Mexico to Seattle, Washington on Thursday when an emergency passenger situation occurred, a Delta Air Lines spokesperson said in a statement.
The plane touched down a little past 7 p.m. in Sacramento when a passenger became unresponsive, CBS Sacramento reported. The aircraft was met in the airport by medical personnel where they attended to the passenger onsite.
Sacramento Airport Fire pronounced the passenger dead at the scene, according to ABC-10. The Sacramento County Coroner's Office identified the passenger as Derik Howard, 53, of Seattle.
Based on an initial assessment of the county coroner, the passenger likely died of natural causes, according to CBS Sacramento.
"The coroner has to perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death, which will more than likely take some time to determine as the pathologist usually orders testing and will have to wait on those results," NBC News quoted the coroner as saying in a statement.
The Airbus A319 was able to return to Seattle after Howard was removed from the plane, arriving around two hours late, NBC News said.
Pilots can request a priority landing space in the event of an onboard emergency like a severe illness or death.
Airliners that are forced to divert also favor bigger airports with facilities to handle a medical emergency, like a nearby hospital and ample airport emergency services, according to Newsweek.
Cabin crew are trained in first aid and can perform CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation). The International Air Transport Association recommends that crews continue performing CPR until they have landed, but after 30 minutes, if there are no signs of life, the person may be presumed dead, Newsweek said.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Sacramento International Airport authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday.
