VancouverMETRO VANCOUVER NEWS
Passenger in medical distress airlifted from cruise ship off B.C. coast
RCAF crews evacuated a passenger from a cruise ship about 200 kilometres northwest of Port Hardy early Saturday and transferred the patient to hospital after arriving in Comox.
A passenger experiencing a medical emergency aboard a cruise ship about 200 kilometres northwest of Port Hardy was airlifted to safety by the Royal Canadian Air Force early Saturday.
The evacuation was carried out by the RCAF’s 442 Transport and Rescue Squadron, based at 19 Wing Comox, under the direction of the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Victoria.
According to the RCAF, crews responded before dawn with a CH-149 Cormorant helicopter and a CC-295 Kingfisher aircraft. The Cormorant reached the vessel first, allowing crews to co-ordinate the medical evacuation with the cruise ship’s captain.
Two search and rescue technicians were lowered to the ship’s deck to prepare the patient for extraction. The passenger, a companion and medical personnel were then hoisted into the hovering helicopter and flown to Comox.
The patient was transferred to BC Emergency Health Services on arrival and taken to hospital for further treatment. No details about the passenger’s condition were released.