Panaji: The excitement of attending the canonization ceremony of Blessed Joseph Vaz ended in tragedy for a Goan family, when a 79-year-old man from Panaji died of a massive heart attack on Wednesday morning.
Cypriano Jose Monteiro of St Tome along with his wife and their son, Neville, had left for Sri Lanka on Sunday to attend the historic event.
“This was his first trip to Sri Lanka and he was hale and hearty, with no health issues whatsoever,” said his daughter, Elaine, reported heraldgoa.in.
Speaking to the Herald from Sri Lanka, Neville said the family had gone in a group to Sri Lanka and had attended a Mass in a chapel dedicated to Blessed Joseph Vaz in Kandy on Monday.
“This morning, we were to travel from Kandy to Colombo and we were taken to a gem factory in Kandy. My father suddenly felt uneasy and a doctor in our group tried to revive him. We then shifted him to a local hospital, but it was too late and he was declared dead,” said Neville.
“It was not easy to communicate with the hospital staff, as they were not familiar in English. Since we are in a foreign country, there are various formalities to complete. Our minister, Avertano Furtado, who is also in Sri Lanka, has been in constant touch with me and the Indian Embassy in Colombo. Our tour operator, Paul from Zion Tours and Travels, has also been in close contact with me,” Neville added.
“Perhaps, it must have been God’s will that my father died in the same place where Blessed Joseph Vaz had breathed his last,” said Neville.
The family hopes to complete the different formalities and bring the body back to Goa by Friday.