MANILA, Philippines—A silver tie was taut between her neck and a door handle as Levie Garma laid gasping for breath on the cold floor of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 (NAIA 3) mezzanine area Thursday morning.
Shrieks for help from a surprised female maintenance officer alarmed workers and a few passengers exchanging coffee, donuts and fastfood at the 4th floor concessionaire's area around 10:30 a.m., when Garma was found trembling behind an access door that led to the elevators.
Carrying a light shoulder bag that contained just her wallet and a few personal items, slipper-shod Garma had been seen by herself on the concessionaire's level as passengers trickled in for a quick bite before their flight.
“I'd seen her standing near the stairs, she had a blank stare ... Moments later, I noticed she disappeared then I heard someone screaming for help,†coffee shop attendant Jaime Villaflor said in Filipino.
Villaflor and others on the mezzanine rushed to the scene and found Garma on the floor as a silver necktie constricted her neck while it was tied to the door handle.
“She was on the floor. She was already pale and struggling to breathe,†Villaflor told the Philippine Daily Inquirer, parent company of INQUIRER.net.
Michael Vargas, a passenger service assistant who happened to be a trained practical nurse, applied first aid upon seeing Garma close to strangulation.
“Her neck was already bloated, inflated (his own words) ... I estimate that she had been lying there with the necktie around her neck for between three to five minutes,†Vargas told airport officers.
Vargas noticed that Garma's gums bled, most likely because “she clenched her teeth tightly to impede breathing.â€
Responders immediately undid the tight knot they believed Garma tied herself. Vargas placed a popsicle stick between her teeth to help restore breathing and rolled her on her side.
Airport authorities have yet to determine whether Garma was passenger or one who accompanied a traveler to the terminal, but police found neither a plane ticket nor a passport inside her bag.(Inquirer.net)
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