Posted by Sade Williams
A Nigerian woman on Wednesday, gave birth to a baby boy mid-air on an evacuation flight that left Dubai for Lagos at 10am at about 60 minutes into the flight.
The airplane however, returned to Dubai to disembark the mother and child whom authorities said are doing well.
It was gathered that all passengers in the flight were tested and found to be Covid-19 free before being allowed to board.
“A Nigerian lady, one of the stranded Nigerian travellers returning from Dubai, has been delivered of a baby boy. She was delivered onboard which resulted in the plane returning back to Dubai after take off. She is currently being admitted at a hospital in Dubai.
“The Nigerian Ambassador in Dubai, Amb. Mohammed Rimi and staff of the Embassy are in touch with mother and child who are in good condition”, Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa revealed this in a national daily on Wednesday.
She said the woman was delivered of a baby boy and both son and mother were doing well at a hospital in Dubai.
An Emirates source however told test.clinztouch.com that crew was unaware of any pregnant woman onboard as she didn’t declare she was pregnant while being profiled for the flight.
“Yes, a woman gave birth on the flight and the pilot had to return to Dubai but she didn’t declare she was pregnant, anyway, but they are doing well”, the source said.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, had said 265 Nigerians would arrive in Lagos from Dubai on Wednesday as part of efforts to bring Nigerians willing to come back into the country amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is in the process of evacuating Nigerians from abroad and in accordance with Nigeria Centre for Disease Control guidelines, the evacuees will undergo a mandatory 14-day supervised quarantine in a monitored environment.
“In this regard, Emirates Airlines is scheduled to evacuate the first batch of 265 Nigerians from Dubai, United Arab Emirates and they will arrive at 3:00 pm on Wednesday, 6th May 2020 at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos,” Onyeama had said in a statement through the ministry’s spokesperson, Ferdinand Nwonye.
