MANILA, Philippines — Actress and former beauty queen Lara Quigaman said her mother, Precy, is safe after Philippine Airlines flight PR116 diverted to Anchorage, Alaska, because of an indication involving the aircraft’s cabin pressurization system.
Quigaman shared the update in a Facebook video Thursday, Sept. 10, after the Canada-bound flight diverted from its route to Vancouver.
Quigaman said she expected her mother to arrive in Vancouver Wednesday evening but received an email from the airline informing her that the flight had been diverted.
She searched online for information about the diversion and learned that the aircraft had encountered an emergency, which caused her to worry when she could not reach her mother.
Quigaman said she received no message from Precy from around 5 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. She said her husband, Marco Alcaraz, encouraged her to pray while they waited for an update.
A few minutes after their prayer, Precy contacted Quigaman and explained that she had only gained access to Wi-Fi at that point.
“She’s fine, everyone was fine,” Quigaman said.
She said her mother told her that oxygen masks had deployed and that passengers had started to panic. Precy also hyperventilated during the incident.
Quigaman said she felt relieved that her mother and the other passengers remained safe.
It was not immediately clear whether Precy had already arrived in Canada.
PAL earlier said PR116 diverted after the crew received an “indication concerning the aircraft’s cabin pressurization system.” The airline said all passengers and crew landed safely in Anchorage.