BC

Canadian traveller dies in Dominican

A story affecting all Canadians travelling abroad has taken a tragic turn.



Mike McDonald, the comatose B.C. resident at the centre of a travel insurance debate, has died.



His cousin, Vernon resident Keith McDonald, says he was placed on life support Saturday morning.



He died that evening.



Despite the tragic outcome, McDonald says he is grateful for the support of the community.



"The public pressure made the insurance pay, but too late I guess," says McDonald.



Mike McDonald's travel insurance company initially refused to pay his medical bills after he ended up in a Dominican Republic hospital in a coma.



He had fallen and struck his head on a granite floor at a resort while celebrating a friends wedding on November 6.



The insurance company insisted it was the resort that was liable for the accident.



Last week, the insurance company relented and agreed to pay $30,000 in medical bills, but would not cover the $70,000 air ambulance flight to Canada.







BC resident Mike McDonald remains in a coma in a Dominican hospital while his insurance company and a resort play the 'blame game'. Update: the insurance company blinks. Castanet's Kelly Hayes reports.