El Al flight attendant dies after contracting measles on plane 5 months ago
Rotem Amitai, mother of three, was hospitalized last April after contracting the virus during a flight from New York to Israel at the end of March; the 43-year-old suffered from respiratory failure and remained in intensive care unit during most of her hospital stay
Rotem Amitai, mother of three, was admitted to Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba in April after contracting the virus during El Al flight 002 that departed from New York to Israel on March 26.
The 43-year-old started developing symptoms associated with the disease - high fever and rash - shortly after landing in Israel a day later, on March 27.
Amitai's condition continued to deteriorate and she was transferred to the hospital's intensive care unit, isolated from other patients. She suffered from respiratory failure and remained unconscious during most of her hospital stay.
Her condition worsened further and she was eventually transferred to Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva where she was pronounced dead early Tuesday.
"Rotem was a wonderful woman and a devoted mother. We are grieving her premature departure,” said her family in a statement.
The epidemiological examination showed the flight attendant had been vaccinated in the past against the disease with one out of the two necessary shots. The airline instructed all its flight attendants to immediately get vaccinated against the virus following the incident.
"El Al bows its head in grief in light of the death of one of our aircrew members,” said the airline in a statement. “After the incident, the company acted to immediately vaccine all its aircrews.
“The company will continue to act on the issue in accordance with Ministry of Health guidelines. We send our condolences to the family and will continue to support them.”
