Durban — Two people were rescued off marine vessels due to medical emergencies in separate incidents on Saturday morning, in northern KwaZulu-Natal.
National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Richard’ Bay deputy station commander Norman Rautenbach said NSRI Richards Bay duty controllers, NSRI EOC (Emergency Operations Centre), TNPA (Transnet National Ports Authority) Port of Richards Bay Port Control, a WC Government Health EMS duty doctor, Police Sea Borderline Control, Netcare 911 duty controllers and Telkom Maritime Radio Services helped in the operations.
In co-operation with the ship agents, these agencies assisted the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC), in the logistics and co-ordination of the patient evacuation operations.
In the first incident at 12.45am, NSRI Richard’s Bay duty crew were activated following reports from the MRCC of a medical emergency of a local woman on-board a cruise liner, Rautenbach said.
After ship medics evaluated the woman’s medical condition, and it was deemed necessary to get her to a hospital, the cruise liner turned around at Cape Vidal and headed towards Richard’s Bay.
“Our duty crew launched the NSRI rescue craft Ocean Guardian, accompanied by a Netcare 911 rescue paramedic, and rendezvoused with the cruise liner two nautical miles off-shore of the Port of Richard’s Bay,” Rautenbach said.
“In favourable seas the patient was transferred on to our rescue craft, accompanied by her husband, and in the care of the Netcare 911 paramedic, the patient was brought to our NSRI station 19 rescue base.”
Rautenbach said the woman was taken to hospital by a Netcare 911 ambulance in a stable condition for further medical care.
In the second incident, the NSRI Richard’s Bay duty crew were alerted to prepare to medically evacuate an injured crewman off a bulk carrier motor vessel later in the morning.
“At 11am we launched the NSRI Richard’s Bay rescue craft Spirit of Richard’s Bay and rendezvoused with the motor vessel 11 nautical miles off-shore,” Rautenbach said.
“The adult Filipino crewman was transferred on to our rescue craft and he was brought to our NSRI station 19 Richard’s Bay base where a ship agent transported the man to a doctor for medical treatment.”
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