Indian Navy airlifts critically ill seafarer from merchant vessel

MUMBAI: The Indian Navy on Saturday safely evacuated a critically ill seafarer from a merchant navy vessel off the western seaboard, an official said. The Navy received information from the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), Mumbai and the Indian Coast Guard in the wee hours of the day about a seafarer in a critical condition onboard MV Babylon.

"The 52-year-old Indian seafarer had suffered a stroke (cerebrovascular accident) the previous night - a case with left-sided hemiplegia," the Navy said in a release.

An ALH helicopter was configured to the medical intensive care unit (MICU) role and launched from INS Shikra with a medical officer and medical attendant onboard.

"Notwithstanding prevailing poor visibility, the aircraft identified the merchant vessel and landed onboard for a successful medevac ( medical evacuation ). The patient's vitals were monitored continuously during return transit on the ALH," the Navy said. On arrival at INS Shikra in Mumbai, the patient was safely transferred to Kokilaben Hospital for further treatment, it said.