Tony Aldapa is a hero. He risked his own health and well-being to help another foolish and irresponsible human being in great need. Now Aldapa is experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
Tony Aldapa, The Hero Of United Flight 591
Aldapa is an emergency medical technician (EMT). When an elderly man experienced cardiac arrest onboard UA591 from Orlando to Los Angeles, Aldapa sprang into action and administered CPR for nearly an hour in attempt to revive the man. This despite the admission from the man’s wife that he had been experiencing several symptoms of COVID-19.
While Aldapa was unable to revive the man, he certainly was the best hope the man had of surviving a flight he never should have taken in the first place.
Aldapa eventually broke his silence on Twitter:
By now most of you know I was on the @united flight that has been in the news. I made the decision to attempt to save the passengers life and along with 2 others performed CPR for close to an hour until we landed. And continued to help the firefighters when they came onboard.
— Face (@Face_withaQ) December 19, 2020
I knew the risks involved in performing CPR on someone that potentially has COVID but I made the choice to do so anyways. I spoke with the passengers wife about his medical history and she never mentioned he was positive, she said he was scheduled to have a test done in LA.
— Face (@Face_withaQ) December 19, 2020
I spent the remainder of the flight covered in my own sweat and in that man’s urine. I have since become symptomatic myself and am awaiting the results of my second test. I have not been contacted by the airline or by @CDCgov as of this time.
— Face (@Face_withaQ) December 19, 2020
I spent the remainder of the flight covered in my own sweat and in that man’s urine. I have since become symptomatic myself and am awaiting the results of my second test. I have not been contacted by the airline or by @CDCgov as of this time.
— Face (@Face_withaQ) December 19, 2020
Aldapa also shared with TMZ what happened:
But the story has sadly taken a turn for the worse, as Aldapa is now experiencing symptoms consistent with COVID-19:
“When I woke up again on Wednesday, my whole body was still hurting. I had a headache, a little bit of a cough, and then it kinda — everyday since then my cough will be a little bit worse, or my headache will be a little bit worse, I feel like I got hit by a train. Not well.”
Although he has tested negative, the incubation period is up to 14 days and ABC-7 Los Angeles notes he awaiting the results of a second test.
I thought this exchange spoke greatly of his character:
I’m not replying to many comments but this one definitely needed one. Regardless of if they were lying, or if they didn’t know he was sick, everyone deserves the chance to live and if people lose that willingness to help because of fear of a virus then we really are in trouble.
— Face (@Face_withaQ) December 21, 2020
I salute Aldapa for his selflessness.
CONCLUSION
I had planned to offer a more personal profile and hope to speak to Aldapa when he recovers. For now, we send him our thoughts and our prayers that he would continue to test negative and his symptoms would disappear.
image: Tony Aldapa / Instagram
In other words, a healthy man in the least risky age group exposed himself to a virus with a 99.99% survival rate. Some hero.
Who survives and who doesn’t varies greatly. People in their ’80s survive, while physically fit people in their 40s and die. There’s no way to say that he would survive COVID. Is thought there may be a genetic component to who survives and who doesn’t. Even for those who survive the virus, many are experiencing long-term health effects, including heart damage and lung damage. The virus is too new, and too little is known about it to say that It wasn’t risking his life by helping this man. The elderly man should not have been flying when he knew he was positive with COVID, and his wife should have been honest.
It’s sad that the man died on the United flight but he was a selfish bastard for knowingly getting on a flight and exposing all those people who could potentially get it and die. His wife was complicit in his crime as she let him lie and get on a plane and she didn’t say anything. I think she should be charged as an accessory to his crime. I work in Health Care and put my life on the line everyday when I go to work. These selfish people that don’t follow public health guidelines and rules are part of the problem. I think they should be fined, do jail time and be open to civil suits for assault and battery if they knowingly expose people to a deadly virus and someone gets it.
You are despicable, Joe.
Suckle my taint
Go f yourself, you nazi scum.
God my balls itch, why don’t you scratch them?
Not 99.99%. Some people have survived but with a lung transplant. A lung transplant is not like a normal lung. It’s far worse.
I know a healthy and cautious person that got Covid-19. Did not die but it was a serious illness.
Wow you are a real prick
I think you like little boys.
I think you have tiny Trump-like hands…and we all know what that means
Open wide, and swallow my spunk.
@Joe, let me translate all these diplomatic responses to your comment – ignorant bordering on idiotic.
Enjoy your evening.
No worries my friend. If the anti-travel Covid cult weirdos here are upset it means I must be right.
Apart from the knowledge that obesity is a major risk factor for a poor outcome across all age groups in individuals who contract COVID, I have encountered young individuals develop irreversible brain damage due to hypoxia. Did they survive COVID , yes, will they ever regain meaningful quality of life, no. A statistic is a number, it’s quantitative, it never represents what truly matters beneath the surface. And 99% is fabulous if we are dealing with West Nile virus which is poorly transmissible, but a mortality rate of 1% with the second most transmissible infection known to mankind (1st is measles) is horrific with devastating consequences. To put another perspective of the statistic you stated, approx 150,000 people die each year from ALL causes, this year more than 300,00 people have died from COVID and that is probably an underestimation.
THIS guy is foolish for flying with Covid? You are the one who just a few months ago suggested knowingly infecting yourself with COVID just so you could start flying again!!!!!
Total non-sequitur. There’s a huge difference between self-isolating for 14 days and getting on a plane knowing you are gravely ill…
First, he is not part of those in the least risky age group. According to the CDC, that group is those aged between 0-4.
Second, even as a healthy male between 20-30, morbidity rates are probably higher than 0.001%, like you suggested.
Third, he is a hero for acting selflessly. Period.
The US Armed Forces currently has over 1.3 million active duty personnel, with about 200,000 transitioning in and out of service each year. In the roughest estimate, at least two million people have served over the past 14 years. In that same period, just over 17000 have died in service.
Using these figures, a whopping 99.15% of those in the armed forces survive their military service. Should we revisit why we hail those who serve our country as heroes? Of course not.
Furthermore, unlike some of the negative externalities or personal gains that may arise from military service, I don’t see any reasonable argument for how Tony Aldapa was acting in anything other than a selfless manner.
Just to be clear, my comment was directed @Joe.
Thank you. That was a lovely explanation. He is a hero for his selfless act and the a*# who wrote that comment is a jerk.
And you are a cunning runt.
@Joe Please seek help for your obvious mental issues. Also, enjoy watching Joe Biden’s inauguration in January.
Your Trump-tiny hands flailing at the keyboard must be so infuriated right now – Jan 20 here we come!
Politics isn’t my life. I’m happy no matter who is president, unlike some people. The fact I got you so riled also makes me laugh. Besides, you know the old man is going to be a hilarious disaster anyway lol.
Most health professionals swear a variation of the Hippocratic oath; to that extent , he was just doing his job. But of course we salute and thank him. His actions were praiseworthy.
You’re being a bit ‘over the top’ with the repeatedly harsh assessment of the deceased. The guy was elderly, ill, probably scared witless, obviously desperate to get home. Yes, a bad call to fly…but he paid a very high price for his poor judgement.
@Paolo – the question is did others around him and the EMT deserve to potentially pay for this person’s poor choice? Another way to look at it: what if this was an old man too intoxicated to drive, yet his wife still gave him the the keys to the car and drive. He then caused an accident, causing others to get injured, would we have the same perspective?
Yes, point well made. But sometimes people in desperate circumstances make really bad choices, unwittingly ( or otherwise) putting others at risk. While we condemn his decision to fly, our criticism of the individual could be a little more muted, IMO.
Did the old man who died and his wife truly believe this virus was a hoax? Did Tony believe it as well?
Tony should open civil proceedings against president, any of the dumb fucks around him and the Republican party. If Tony dies the US should open murder inquiries against the president and many of his minions. In fact every covid death where the person who died believed the virus was a hoax has a similar case
The president is already on record down playing the seriousness of the virus KNOWINGLY. He should definitely be investigated after office for charges.
He should be given The Chair!
But the airlines say that the transmission rate aboard airplanes is near nil even if someone has the virus. Hos much “danger” was everyone really in?
When someone is being forcefully ventilated, it has now become one of the highest risk situations.
The fact that trolls are allowed to run rampant on this site makes me want to unsubscribe.
A lot of the abject hoaxers & racists have left post-11/3, fortunately (as I predicted)…a few still linger sadly.
IMO it’s worse on other travel blogs.
You americans are so funny. Hahahaha