air canada lost baggage

Lost baggage found in Toronto street tracked down to owner by Air Canada flight attendant

Losing your luggage can be a nightmare, but all hope doesn't need to be lost if you find yourself in this scenario. A recent story out of Toronto is proof that there are still plenty of Good Samaritans out there that will do everything in their power to get your belongings back to you. 

On Saturday, a delivery driver heading down Portland Street approaching Queen Street West around 6 a.m. discovered two pieces of luggage sitting in the middle of the street. 

The mysterious luggage had Air Canada tags attached, but with no owner in sight, the driver decided to load the baggage onto his truck and drop them off at a police station in the city. 

According to the delivery driver's friend, Nadine Araksi, the two suitcases fell out of the back of a moving vehicle and belonged to someone who had travelled to Toronto the day before. 

Araksi posted about the discovery in a local community Facebook group for Leslieville residents, which happened to get the attention of Miriam Swartz, a flight attendant for Air Canada. 

"If you want to [direct message] the luggage tags I might be able to do a search as I work for Air Canada," Swartz replied to the Facebook post. Once she received pictures of the baggage tags, she was able to track down valuable information including the passenger's name and travel information. 

Soon, Swartz discovered that the luggage belonged to a person who had taken a flight from Saskatoon to Toronto over the weekend. 

The investigative duo happened to find a woman with the same name who played on a Saskatoon sports team, and decided to email the team describing what had happened. 

To their surprise, the team confirmed that they had found the right person.

Kristin Hood, who is the owner of the luggage, had been picked up by her brother from Toronto Pearson Airport on Saturday. Straight from the airport, they headed to a bar downtown to celebrate Hood's 25th birthday and ultimately left the car in a parking lot overnight. 

Hood told CTV News that she assumed someone went to the back of the truck and pulled out the bags, and left them in the middle of the street. Eight hours later, she received a call from Air Canada saying that her baggage was waiting for her at a police station in Toronto.

Although it's a rare and lucky coincidence that Hood was able to be reunited with her lost luggage, it serves as a reminder that there are still plenty of selfless and considerate people out there in the world.

Lead photo by

Swansway Motor Group


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