A Woman Self-Isolated In A Toilet For Hours After Testing Positive For COVID Mid-Flight
Icelandair staff did their best to make her comfortable ✈️
A U.S. woman is getting some major praise for self-isolating in the washroom of an aircraft, after finding out mid-flight that she had COVID.
After Marisa Fotieo's throat started hurting while on a flight from Chicago to Reykjavik on December 20, she decided to give herself a rapid test mid-flight and got a not-so-positive bit of news: she tested positive for COVID-19.
Fotieo took the rapid test in the aircraft's washroom, and when she got the result she immediately quarantined herself in there for the remaining five hours of the flight.
The flight attendant, Ragnhildur Eiríksdóttir, a.k.a. Rocky, made sure Fotieo was well taken care of the entire flight and brought her food and drinks for the rest of the trip.
"She made sure I had everything I needed for the next five hours, from food to drinks and constantly checked on me, assuring me I would be all right," Fotieo told NBC.
Fotieo even posted a TikTok video of herself in the toilet, which has since gained 4.4 million views.
@marisaefotieo Visit TikTok to discover videos!
She later posted an emotional update on TikTok, explaining how the flight attendant even sent her a care package after the flight, including a mini Christmas tree since Fotieo would be spending Christmas in isolation.
@marisaefotieo Visit TikTok to discover videos!
"The super nice flight attendant brought me something. She's from Iceland. She gave me her Instagram handle. I followed her then she reached out to me and said she wanted to bring me something," Fotieo said.
"Why are people so nice," said a crying Fotieo in the video.
Icelandair also praised the flight attendant for how well she handled the situation.
The airline took to Twitter to give a shoutout to Rocky, the flight attendant, for taking such good care of Fotieo during the flight and even going out of her way to send her gifts at her quarantine hotel.
"Thank you, Rocky and all the Icelandair staff who go above & beyond, on & off-duty. Get well soon, Marisa. We can't wait to have you back on board," said the tweet.
Despite having COVID-19 herself, Fotieo was more concerned about the other passengers on the flight.
"There's 150 people on the flight, and my biggest fear was giving it to them," she told NBC.
She added that she tested positive on the flight despite having two negative PCR tests before boarding.
Fotieo says she's been isolating at the Red Cross in Iceland while she recovers, and the isolation has given her plenty of time to post regular updates on TikTok.