‘Devoted’ wife of Singapore Airlines victim Geoff Kitchen told he died from her intensive care bed, friend reveals
THE WIFE of the Brit who died in the turbulence tragedy at 37,000ft is in intensive care suffering from spinal injuries, it emerged last night.
Mum-of-two Linda Kitchen was severely hurt in the mid-air catastrophe which killed husband Geoff from a suspected heart attack.
The couple from Thornbury, Glos, had just set off on a trip of a lifetime to the Far East when the accident happened on the Singapore Airlines Boeing 777.
The plane diverted to Bangkok where critically injured Mrs Kitchen was taken off along with up to 70 injured passengers and crew.
She is in intensive care and was told on Wednesday morning that her husband of 51 years had died in the disaster.
The grandmother spoke to her son Stuart from her hospital bed.
A family friend said: “She was woozy with painkillers and she’s going for a second scan.
“She has spinal and shoulder injuries – I think she was unconscious when they got her off the plane.
“The tragic news was broken to her this morning. They were such a devoted couple, you can’t imagine what it must be like for her.”
The “adventurous” couple were on their way to a six-week holiday of a lifetime taking in Singapore, Japan, and Indonesia before heading to Australia.
Injured passengers were given numbers on their stretchers when they came off the plane because their names weren’t known.
Geoff and Linda’s family in the UK were unable to get information until the Thai authorities brought in translators to help worried family members of those caught up in the plane drama.
The couple’s children Stuart and Anna Proctor have remained in the UK but the close friend said there were plans for them to fly to Bangkok.
Geoff Kitchen, 73, died of a heart attack as 18 others were sent to the hospital in neck braces and slings with some even being carried away on stretchers.
Flight SQ321 took off from London Heathrow shortly after 10pm on Monday with 211 passengers and 18 crew on board – including 47 Brits.
Nearly 11 hours into the 13-hour journey to Singapore, the packed jet was smashed by sudden “severe turbulence” while passengers were eating breakfast, officials said.
Shocking images showed food, drinks and cutlery strewn across the galley kitchens of the plane as it was violently thrown around.
The granddad had just begun a six week trip to Singapore, Indonesia, Japan and Australia, with Linda when tragedy struck.
The keen amateur actor and former insurance worker was described as “a really nice bloke” by his devastated friends.
Steve Dimond, who lives with wife Jill a few doors down from Geoff in a quiet leafy cul-de-sac in Thornbury, Glos, said: “We are really upset. My wife is upstairs crying.
“He was a really nice guy. I last saw them on Sunday night and my wife saw them drive off on Monday.
“They were going on a big holiday to Singapore, Indonesia, Japan and Australia. They have a son and a daughter.”
Geoff had suffered heart problems in recent years and had stents put in to widen his arteries.
Boeing said: “We extend our deepest condolences to the family who lost a loved one and our thoughts are with the passengers and crew.”