Marisa Fotieo was travelling from Chicago to Iceland on Icelandair, on December 19, when she tested COVID-19 positive mid-flight. The bathroom became an isolation zone for the next three hours, for Fotieo, whose final destination was Switzerland, where she was going with her father and brother.  

As per CNN reports, Fotieo had taken two PCR tests, as well as five rapid tests, all of which had returned negative results. However, after an hour and a half on the flight, the woman began to feel her throat become sore. Not wanting to risk it, Fotieo decided to take another test, thinking it would make her “feel better”. It immediately came back as positive. 

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She’s a teacher in Chicago, and though Fotieo is fully vaccinated, and has received the booster, she has a habit of testing consistently since she largely works with an unvaccinated population of young children. When the test results came back positive while Fotieo was in the air, over the Atlantic Ocean, her first reaction was panic. 

She recalled, “The first flight attendant I ran into was Rocky. I was hysterical, I was crying. I was nervous for my family who I just had dinner with. I was nervous for the other people on the plane. I was nervous for myself.” 

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The attendant, Rocky, or Ragnhildur Eiríksdóttir, helped calm down Fotieo and later mentioned, “Of course, it’s a stress factor when something like this comes up, but that’s part of our job”.

She tried her best to rearrange the seats and find a lone spot for the infected woman. However, the flight was full, and at the time, the bathroom was the only option. Fotieo spoke of this, saying, “When she came back and told me she couldn’t find enough seating, I opted to stay in the bathroom because I did not want to be around others on the flight”. An out of service sign was put up, so as to give Fotieo the room. 

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She bought internet access at the time to let her school know, and also posted a TikTok video of her experience. She clarified that far from feeling cramped in the aeroplane bathroom, she was glad to be isolated and away from the other passengers, including her 70-year-old father. 

Once the flight landed in Iceland, Fotieo’s family was the last to deboard. Both her father and brother did not show any symptoms and were allowed to take the connecting flight to Switzerland. Fotieo was subjected to a rapid test and a PCR, both of which showed her to be positive. 

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She was then taken to a Red Cross hotel for a 10-day quarantine. Fotieo recounted her experience as being an “easy” one, since doctors checked on her thrice a day, with meals and medication readily available. The woman clarified that Icelanders are nice people, and Rocky helped her during this time, making the stay smooth. 

Fotieo continued documenting her experience on TikTok for the duration of her stay, and Rocky didn’t leave her alone on Christmas, sending gifts and snacks. The two had remained in contact over social media, and Rocky said, “I knew she was going to be by herself in Iceland. So even if it’s isolated, if you have someone there that can bring you something is nice. So, I just had to be that someone.”

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Since Fotieo’s last day of quarantine was on December 30, she was allowed to venture out after that. Her family planned to meet her in Iceland, and they are scheduled to return on January 3. Fotieo intends to meet Rocky before leaving, and the latter has also promised to visit when she’s in Chicago next. Fotieo has praised Rocky highly, saying, “Coming out of this experience I have a new friend and I have a new outlook on how much flight attendants have to do”.