October 14 - Medical Evacuation At Sea

Today we saw the true definition of teamwork. Last night one of the passengers suffered a severe stroke and he needed immediate hospitalization. The boat having left Kauai yesterday in the late afternoon was well past the point where a helicopter could make a safe round trip.  So the boat turned around and headed back to Oahu.  The ship needed to be within 150 miles of Honolulu for the American Navy to be able to send a helicopter for the medical evacuation.

In order to prepare a safe evacuation site, the captain closed down the forward pool area.  The staff then went about the task of securing this site.  The pool and the hot tubes were drained.  All the deck chairs were removed, the bars were shuttered, the overhead lighting cables disassembled and anything that could possibly be blown about by the wind of the helicopter secured.  Then all the cabins below this secured area were evacuated because there was a possibility that the chopper might crash into the boat while attempting the rescue.

We next saw a US Navy C130 plane circle the boat multiple times.  The plane was measuring wind speeds and directions at various points around the boat in order to determine the safest approach to the evacuation site.

When the helicopter arrived it made one pass over the ship and then circled around and hovered over the evacuation site. You could tell the pilot was an expert as he kept the chopper basically level with boat despite the rolling of the ship caused by the ocean waves.  Then one of the navy rescue team members repealed down to the deck, followed by the cradle for the transportation of the passenger. You could tell that the wind was causing havoc as the cradle was spinning widely as it descended to the deck. I was told that it had wrapped itself around some poles on the ship during its descent.

The chopper then disengaged itself from the cradle and left the area.  During this time the patient was secured in the cradle.  The helicopter then returned and lowered a cable that was attached to the cradle.  Again it was amazing to watch as the pilot made multiple adjustments in order keep the chopper as steady as possible in relation to the ship.  The passenger was then hoisted up to the helicopter which I would estimate to be at least 50 feet in the air. It went very smoothly and the patient was secured inside the chopper.

The chopper then left to very loud applause from the passengers and circled around, came back and picked up the navy officer who had repealed onto the ship.  All in all it took about 30 minutes for evacuation to be completed.  Our captain was outstanding as he clearly communicated what was going to happen and informing passengers of their responsibilities during the evacuation.

Unfortunately the wife of the patient was not allowed to travel with her husband on the chopper.  She will have to wait until we dock in Vancouver on Friday and then return to Honolulu.  From what we’ve heard he may not make it that long, but here is praying that he does make a recovery.

Congratulations to the US Navy rescue squad and the crew of the Princess Emerald for an amazing display of teamwork.

On a brighter note, tonight was the second of three formal dinner night.  We both had chateaubriand and Marg also had a lobster tail. As usual it was delicious.  After dinner we sent to the lounge and saw Dan Horn who is a ventriloquist. It was one of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen on a cruise.