An 8-year-old girl from Missouri became “ill and unresponsive” on a SkyWest flight to Chicago on Thursday and was later pronounced dead, authorities said.
The flight the child was on took off from Joplin, Missouri, and was headed to Chicago before making an emergency landing in Peoria, Illinois.
“Her family immediately notified the flight personnel of her condition, and they began rapidly rendering aid. Upon landing in Peoria, she was not breathing and had no pulse,” according to a statement from the Peoria County Coroner’s Office.
The child was identified as Sydney Weston, of Carl Junction, Missouri, the coroner’s office said.
The plane landed at the General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport about 7 a.m. because of a medical emergency, according to a statement from the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office posted Thursday on its Facebook page.
Emergency personnel, including deputies and the Air National Guard, attempted “life-saving measures,” but the child was later pronounced dead at a local hospital, the sheriff’s office said.
In a statement to NBC News on Friday, SkyWest Airlines confirmed the child was aboard flight 5121, operating as United Express, from Joplin to Chicago O’Hare International Airport, when a passenger became sick and the flight was diverted to Peoria.
There, she was “met by paramedics to attend to a passenger in medical distress. We appreciate the efforts of our crew members who responded quickly to assist and the medical personnel who met the aircraft,” SkyWest said.
The girl, who has an autopsy scheduled for Friday, died shortly after 8 a.m., the coroner’s office said.
The family of Sydney Weston could not be immediately reached Friday for comment.
Read More: 8-year-old girl has medical emergency on SkyWest flight to Chicago and dies
