Quick-thinking travel agent helps save customer’s life
A travel agent has been praised for quick thinking that helped to save the life of a customer on holiday in Peru.
The 32-year-old holidaymaker was honeymooning in Arequipa when he became seriously ill.
He was desperately in need of an emergency blood transfusion but supplies in Arequipa’s local hospital were scarce and time was running out.
Hearing of his customer’s plight on the other side of the world, a Flight Centre agent in Australia issued an appeal for help among colleagues.
It was shared by Donna Hanson, Flight Centre’s director of transformational change, on the company’s Workplace network.
The response was immediate and overwhelming, said Donna.
"It was like wildfire. Everybody started jumping on saying ‘I have a cousin who lives there’, ‘I have a customer who is down there for six months’, ‘I’m calling the airline and asking for help’. People were sharing it on their private social media.
"There were so many people waiting in line, they had a blood supply for a very long time."
The man’s life was eventually saved and the hospital also received enough blood donations for several months’ supply.
"We will never know who the donors were but we do know that many named Flight Centre as the reason they were there," said Sue Henderson, Flight Centre’s retail product manager in Australia.
"I have no doubt that the Workplace messages and the subsequent actions of the FCTG (Flight Centre Travel Group) employees in the USA and Canada definitely spread the word."
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Digital Travel Reporter of the Mirror totally seduced by HotelPlanner AI Travel Agent
Strike action set to cause travel chaos at Brussels airports