The Peoria County coroner said Friday that an autopsy into a young girl who died shortly after a plane she was traveling on needed an emergency landing was inconclusive, with a longer process likely needed to determine her cause of death.
Coroner Jamie Harwood said that the autopsy in the death of 8-year-old Sydney Weston from Carl Junction, Missouri, was still pending several studies. Those include biopsies, toxicology, blood hematology and chemistry, histology and assorted cultures.
Harwood said that preliminary findings showed no evidence of foul play and no signs of abuse or neglect. He said that the additional testing will likely take four to six weeks to be completed.
Harwood reported Thursday that Weston fell ill when she was flying with her family on United Airlines Flight 5121, with service from Joplin Regional Airport to Chicago O'Hare International Airport. She became unresponsive, with her family notifying flight personnel of her condition.
The flight was diverted to General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport around 7 a.m. Thursday morning, where sheriff's deputies, AMT personnel and Illinois Air National Guard firefighters began life-saving measures. She was quickly transported to OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center, where she died at 8:05 a.m. despite the efforts of first responders and medical personnel to save her life.
Passengers on Flight 5121 were laid over for over five hours before resuming their trip to Chicago, finally touching down at O'Hare's Terminal 2, Gate F23 at 1:28 p.m.
The Peoria County Sheriff's Office and coroner's office are continuing to investigate what led to the girl's death.
"Please keep the child's family and everyone who was involved in this traumatic experience in your thoughts and prayers," Peoria County Sheriff Chris Watkins said in a statement on Thursday.
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