Three weeks ago, Deena Giri’s parents flew from Nepal to visit her in Red Deer.
The two of them arrived at the Calgary International Airport safely, but their luggage did not arrive with them.
This is a problem considering Giri’s father Jeevan has medications in his lost bag for his heart, diabetes and blood pressure – overall, he needs to take about 10 pills every day.
“He’s dependant on medicine,” Giri said on Sunday, which marked the 21st day her parents have been in Red Deer without their luggage.
Jeevan had enough medication for about five days in his carry-on bag, but the rest of his pills were in the lost luggage. Giri said her parents don’t speak English, which is why they didn’t put all of their medication in their carry-on bag.
“If they were asked questions (at customs), it would be challenging for them to reply,” Giri said.
The family has gone to the airport twice in an effort to track down the lost luggage, but have been unsuccessful. Giri said when she’s tried to call the airport, she has been getting no response – she recalled one instance when she was on the line for an hour before the call was disconnected.
They have been able to get medication prescribed in Red Deer, but Giri’s parents’ travel insurance does not cover those costs, so they are paying out of pocket.
Additionally, Giri’s brother has attempted to send their father’s medication from Nepal, but that package is still in customs.
Overall, the family has spent hundreds of dollars as a result of this situation, said Giri.
“On top of the medication, we don’t have the special shoes and clothes he brought for my graduation ceremony,” said Giri, who studied at the University of Alberta.
“We’ve had to buy everything here. Also in their bags, there were so many gifts people had sent to me (from Nepal). Those are special.”
Giri hasn’t been able to see her parents since she moved to Canada in 2018.
“We thought we would spend a good two months together,” she said.
“They arrived June 26 … and it’s all been stress every single day.”
Giri has sent an email to Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau and Canada’s Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra about the situation.
“Please reunite us with our bags, so we can spend the rest of the days being happy instead of all this chaos and stress in Red Deer,” she said in that email.
In an email statement The Advocate, Air Canada said “the global air transport industry is currently challenged due to issues with airport capacity issues, airport-managed baggage systems and third-party providers of such services as passenger screening, customs, and air navigation.”
“We are working hard with these partners and governments to resolve these issues as they are affecting the performance of airlines,” the statement said.
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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