Egyptian balloon accident: Scot’s funeral date set

THE funeral of Yvonne Rennie, the Scottish holidaymaker who was killed in the horrific accident in which a balloon exploded over the Egyptian city of Luxor, is to be held in Perth on Thursday.

Mrs Rennie, 48, who worked with NHS Tayside at Perth Royal Infirmary, was one of 19 tourists who died in the balloon crash at the popular tourist destination on 26 February.

Her husband Michael, 49, and the Egyptian pilot, Momin Murad, were the only two survivors of the crash. They managed to escape the balloon’s gondola when it was still relatively close to the ground.

The balloon exploded after rising 1000 ft into the air before plummeting into a sugar cane field. Mr Rennie, a manager with construction services firm Carillion, escaped with only minor injuries and flew home to Scotland last week after being discharged from hospital .

In a statement, issued by the Foreign Office following the tragedy, Mr Rennie paid tribute to his wife. He said: “Yvonne was my rock, my friend, my shoulder to cry On. She was my world.”

He added: “My heartfelt condolences go out to the other families that have lost relatives around the world in this terrible disaster.”

Mrs Rennie, who previously worked at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee, joined the radiology department at Perth Royal Infirmary as an appointments officer in June 2006, and had latterly been working as a senior administrative officer at the acute hospital.

Her colleagues are expected to join family and friends of the couple at Mrs Rennie’s funeral which will take place on Thursday morning at Perth Crematorium.

The grieving family has requested only family flowers at the funeral service but have also said that donations can be made at the crematorium to Shelter Scotland.