Fort Lauderdale, Florida – The 2 stowaways discovered useless within the wheel effectively of a JetBlue airplane at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Worldwide Airport earlier this month have been recognized as youngsters from the Dominican Republic, authorities confirmed Thursday.
The victims have been named as 16-year-old Elvis Borquez Castillo and Jeik Anilus Lusi. Their moms, Margarita Luisi Elisma and Ironelis Castillo, recognized them via images and DNA testing, carried out by Broward Sheriff’s Workplace deputies, who traveled to the Dominican Republic as a part of the investigation.
Authorities decided that each teenagers died from asphyxiation as a consequence of lack of oxygen within the cramped touchdown gear compartment. The airplane had been flying in freezing temperatures, making survival practically unattainable.
The JetBlue plane made a number of stops, together with Jamaica, Salt Lake Metropolis, New York, and Fort Lauderdale, earlier than upkeep crews found the our bodies throughout a routine post-flight inspection on January 7.
Ironelis Castillo shared that the final time she heard from her son was on January 4, when he was pushed to a close-by airport within the Dominican Republic earlier than trying the deadly journey.
Authorities are nonetheless investigating how the youngsters managed to enter the plane’s touchdown gear compartment, a hazardous space the place survival charges are extraordinarily low as a consequence of excessive temperatures and lack of oxygen at excessive altitudes.
This tragic incident highlights the determined dangers some migrants take searching for higher alternatives.
