The father of a boy who was escorted off a flight for having an allergic reaction has lost his battle with cancer.
Christina Fabian, mother of 7-year-old Giovanni, told local media in Seattle that her husband died from esophageal cancer.
George Alvarado and his son were removed from an Allegiant Air flight from Bellingham, Wash., to Phoenix back in February when Giovanni suffered an allergic reaction before takeoff. Some passengers began to clap when the family exited the plane to get medical attention for his hives breakout.
“My dad’s sick with Stage IV throat cancer,” Giovanni said then, according to the New York Daily News. “And that made me really sadder when I was already sad. I’m sad this has to be a memory with my dad.”
The family was on a “bucket list" trip to the Northwest in an attempt to build memories as Alvarado fought his fatal illness.
“I just looked at the people clapping,” the late Alvarado said after the incident. “I was just shaking my head. I was like, 'Man let’s get out of here.'"
The boy’s allergic reaction was apparently triggered by a service dog who was on the flight.
Some of the passengers on the plane said that the clapping was minimal and not malicious in nature. They added that Allegiant's crew handled the family's medical emergency professionally, despite claims from the Alvarado family that they received a smirking response that “there are dogs on every flight” from a crew member.
“Allegiant is in direct contact with this family and have offered them our sincere apologies with regard to their negative experience,” the company said in a statement. “We are truly sorry for the unfortunate circumstances surrounding their previously ticketed itinerary and for the inconvenience they have experienced as a result.”
The Alvarado family was put on a flight the next day to Arizona.
Stay up-to-date on the biggest health and wellness news with our weekly recap.