500 kg Egyptian woman reaches Mumbai to 'lose' weight

Mumbai, Feb 11: A 36-year old Egyptian woman, weighing around 500 kgs, arrived in Mumbai on Saturday to undergo a weight reduction programme at a city hospital.

Arriving here by an Egypt Air flight, Eman Ahmed stepped out of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport around 6 a.m. - making this her first outdoor visit in over 25 years, an official accompanying her said.

Accompanied by her sister Shaimaa, she is due to be under the care of bariatric surgeon Muffazal Lakdawala and his team at Saifee Hospital over the next few months.

The woman from Alexandria - considered among the heaviest in the world - was lifted by a crane onto a waiting truck outside the airport and transported to the hospital with a police escort and an emergency ambulance in tow.

The hospital has been making preparations for the patient including a special bed to bear her load.