Woman Dies in Husband's Arms After Airport Scanner Interferes With her Pacemaker

A woman, who had a pacemaker fitted, died a few minutes after passing through an airport scanner in the southern Russian town of Ulan-Ude.

Thirty-year-old Diana Tolstova's husband Maxim, claims that he had insisted on airport authorities that his wife has a fitted heart device, however, despite showing the necessary documentation, Tolstova had to pass through the airport scanner, reported The Telegraph.

Tolstova's husband Maxim told the Central European News agency: "When we got to the departure gate she began to feel dizzy and suddenly collapsed. I grabbed her in my arms and called for medical help.

"It took a few minutes before hospital doctors arrived, and when they did they didn't know what to do. They didn't give her any first aid and they didn't call an ambulance. My beautiful Diana died in my arms."

Meanwhile, airport authorities are looking into the incident. An airport spokesman said: "Security and airport personnel are given strict instructions about how to handle people with pacemakers, and we warn them never to let a wearer go through a metal detector."

Despite the victim's husband claiming that the couple had provided documentation to prove that Tolstova was fitted with a heart device, the airport spokesman contradicted Maxim Tolstova's story saying: "In normal circumstances, they see their papers and let them pass. In this case, the patient seems to either have forgotten about it, didn't know or became confused by the airport security arrangements."